Teacher's Aide Arrested After Allegedly Assaulting Students, Staff At Van Nuys Elementary
VAN NUYS (CBSLA.com) — A special education teacher's aide was arrested Monday after allegedly assaulting students and staff at Van Nuys Elementary School.
Los Angeles police were called to the school located on Sylmar Avenue around 8:40 a.m.
CBS2's Rachel Kim said the employee told other staff members that she had not taken her medication as she kicked them and threw chairs.
Police said the woman had a mental illness and had a "psychiatric episode."
"[She had] gone in the classroom and had just kinda lost control and started throwing furniture around and throwing them at students and teachers and those were some of the injuries received. Teachers tried to…subdue her," LAPD Capt. Ivan Minsal said.
An adult and two students were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
The employee was taken into custody and booked for assault with a deadly weapon. She is being held on $30,000 bail and will not be returning to the school.
The Los Angeles Unified School District is investigating.
Meantime, Kim went to the employee's Simi Valley home for comment from family members, but no one answered the door.
Neighbors said the woman lives with her mother.
"I don't see her very often," Cassie Lutz said. "Once a week, maybe. I didn't know she's a teacher."
"We've lived next to them for almost 30 years and we never had any idea. We never talked too much about her teaching," said "Larry."
