Radravious Williams
A year after a Florida teacher allegedly urged six students to attack an African-American seventh-grader because she thought he was disrespectful to her, the St. Lucie County School Board has finally fired her.
Dru Dehart was accused of basically putting out a hit on Radravious Williams in March 2013, after he allegedly told Dehart that he “wished he could curse out teachers someday.” The Northport K-8 school’s surveillance cameras recorded video showing six students setting upon Williams.
This is how Radravious’ mother, Latasha Darrisaw, described the assault.
“He said that they brought him in the hallway, and that they held him down, they kicked him, they stomped him, they beat him. And as he was trying to get away, they just basically like, continued to just torture him.” Darrisaw added, “[Dehart’s] remarks was, ‘I got my eighth-grade boys on you. You’re not so tough now.'”
Ranging in age from 11 to 15, the older boys were Radravious’ friends, but Dehart instructed them to “teach him a lesson.”
The encounter began, according to Williams’ attorney, Dena Sisk Foman, when Dehart told Radravious to be quiet. In response he said, “I wish I could curse at a teacher.”
He admits that it was disrespectful, but he denies Dehart’s claims that he threatened her — and other students back him up.
According to the district’s investigative report, Dehart made matters worse when she “tracked down the students during lunch and contaminated their memories” after the fight concluded. The six students who participated in the attack were later arrested by police.
“As far as we are concerned, they are victims in this too. They were manipulated and they were told to have a certain story,” said Foman. “It is truly unbelievable what happened. A teacher ordered a hit on a child.”
Radravious subsequently switched to another school in the district.
It took the board took only minutes to unanimously fire Dehart. She has never made any public comment about the incident. Her attorney has said she plans to file a civil rights lawsuit.
“Through the entire situation and even when I got the news, I wasn’t, it’s no congratulations on ether side, because she’s suffering and my son is still suffering,” Darrisaw told a local television station. “As a person, as any parent, you want some kind of apology. But I guess we’ll get that whenever she’s ready.”
