Overview
- Authorities say sixth-grade teacher Judith Clark asked the class and then instructed students to close the blinds before directing a student to slap a classmate on May 13, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.
- Detectives used multiple student witness statements to obtain an arrest warrant and took Clark into custody on May 19 on a charge of child abuse without great bodily harm.
- School leaders removed Clark from classroom duties, barred her from student contact once the probe began, and notified the Florida Department of Children and Families on May 14.
- The 12-year-old who carried out the slap told detectives he complied because he feared disobeying the teacher and is not facing charges.
- Clark began teaching at Lee Middle School in 2019 and had been non‑renewed by the district on April 8 with a last scheduled workday of May 29, and the district says it is cooperating with law enforcement and child welfare authorities.