Fairmoor Elementary School teacher fired for breaking up fight

Officials say second-grade teacher Pamela Smith acted too aggressively last April when she broke up a fight between two boys, leading the Columbus Board of Education to terminate her contract.

Smith, a teacher in the school for 15 years, allegedly picked up one of the boys by his shirt and held him to a wall before pushing him to the ground and kneeling on his chest.

A kindergarten assistant and another instructional assistant testified they were breaking up the fight when Smith intervened, despite reports that one of the children was swinging his arms wildly, almost hitting one witness in the neck.

Smith denies the allegation that she pushed the boy against the wall, saying that she was trying to stop the boy from hitting her. She also suggested that the witnesses were coached by the school principal on what to say in their testimonies.

No surveillance footage exists of the incident.

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