An elementary school teacher in Florida is facing criminal charges after investigators allege he physically handled a special needs student following an argument over a toy.
Kevin Adkisson, 52, of Bunnell, was charged with two charges of child abuse without serious bodily harm following an investigation by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office. He was put into the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility and then released on a $5,000 bond.
The event occurred Friday, October 16, at Wadsworth Elementary School. According to investigators, the incident began during free time when two children argued over a toy. When a staff member intervened to break up the fight, Adkisson took the toy from their hands.
A paraprofessional in the classroom informed deputies that Adkisson pushed one of the students as he attempted to move back to a table. Adkisson then seized the student’s arm in a hard slinging action, swinging the child through the air. According to the witness, Adkisson yelled at the pupil, saying the boy was acting like a two-year-old, and told him to go to a designated place.
The furious student crawled under a desk and started screaming and yelling. When the child refused to come out, Adkisson took the desk away, seized the student’s arm, and pushed him against a wall, preventing him from moving. The witness said he heard the boy cry out that Adkisson was harming him and that he couldn’t breathe. Adkisson eventually let the boy go, saying he wasn’t wounded, and walked away.
The paraprofessional instantly notified school administration, who led Adkisson off campus. School administrators subsequently notified the child’s parents, as well as the Florida Department of Children and Families.
FCSO’s Major Case Unit launched an inquiry after DCF reported the alleged physical abuse. When investigators interrogated the kid, he detailed an earlier incident in which Adkisson allegedly slapped both sides of his stomach with clinched fists and pulled him up to relocate him to the back of a line after he cut ahead of his classmates.
Adkisson declined to speak with detectives during the investigation.
“Parents entrust teachers to provide a safe learning environment for their children. Some special needs students can be challenging but everyone who works with these children must always keep their cool,” Sheriff Rick Staly said. “This is an unfortunate incident, but this should not taint the professional and hard-working faculty and staff, which do an outstanding job with our children. But let me be clear: Abuse of any kind, especially at the hands of a trusted adult, will not be tolerated.”
Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore praised the classroom staff for raising the alarm right away.
“I’m proud of our staff for taking action and speaking up in this matter. We will continue to encourage ‘See Something, Say Something’ as a practice for all of our employees and students. Keeping our students safe is everyone’s top priority. The situation is one that we take seriously and are currently investigating, as well as cooperating with authorities,” Moore said. “The district provides intervention training and support to help our faculty and staff care for our students each day. We are committed to ensuring everyone in our district has the resources necessary to meet the unique needs of every student.”
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