Two Covington school employees arrested and charged with cruelty to disabled student

Ashley Hamilton and Raeven Poole

19 minutes ago

COVINGTON, La. (WGNO) — The Covington Police Department is investigating after two school employees were arrested for allegedly injuring a disabled student.

According to police, on May 28, they were called to intervene following an incident at EE Lyon elementary school involving a teacher and a paraprofessional.

News of the arrests spread quickly.

“I’ve never heard of anything going on at this school before it was a first,” said Stephanie, a Covington resident.

Police say footage captured by cameras in the classroom proved invaluable due to the nature of the victim's communication skills.

The video allegedly showed Catherine Mumphrey, 44, and Lauren Brenckle, 71, “engaging in what amounted to battery” on a disabled student.

Both are no longer employees of the school system, and Covington resident Chris Wagner hopes the teachers were fired immediately.

“Because there is no excuse. A for a teacher to mistreat a child and a disabled child in particular. I mean, there’s no excuse for that,” Wagner said.

Stephanie lives next to the school and is angry to learn that she is also disabled.

“Children should not be abused or abused at all. God treats us all the same, so why would you want to have a child with special needs? No, says Stephanie.

St. Tammany Parish Public School Principal Frank Jabbia says, “Student safety is our top priority, and this type of behavior is absolutely unacceptable. We have taken immediate and appropriate action in response to this situation and are committed to maintaining a safe and secure learning environment in our schools for all of our students.

Wagner says he's just grateful the cameras are in the room and glad the school took immediate action.

“It makes me feel better about the situation.” I mean, there’s nothing good about it, but the fact that the school acted quickly says a lot,” Wagner said.

Covington Police Chief Michael Ferrell adds that they take allegations of child abuse very seriously and will investigate such allegations thoroughly.

According to CPD, the investigation is ongoing and no additional details will be released to police.

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