SUMTER, S.C. — A Sumter County teacher has been charged after allegedly slapping a student who was sleeping in an office chair.
Police say on Jan. 9, they responded to an assault call at Prisma Health Tuomey Hospital, where they learned there had been an incident at Lemira Elementary School.
When police arrived at the school, they learned the incident had happened around 1:45 p.m. on Jan. 6. They also learned that the school had a video of the incident, which they were allowed to watch.
According to police, the security footage showed the child asleep in an office-type chair in a classroom and an unnamed person pushing the child in the chair from a classroom into a hallway. The video then shows Sharon Benson exiting her classroom and tapping the child on the chest to try to wake the child up.
Police say the video then shows Benson smacking the child twice on the right side of his face two times, causing the child to fall out of the chair and onto the ground.
School staff told police that the incident had been reported to the school district and that Benson had been placed on administrative leave.
Benson, who is listed on the school's website as a third-grade teacher, is charged with misdemeanor cruelty to children.
Shelly Galloway with the Sumter School District said in a statement, "The conduct of this employee is not indicative of Sumter School District’s values and how we serve children. On January 7, she was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation, and she resigned January 10. "