More questions than answers after release of video showing adult slamming student to ground

DAYTON — A viral video showed a school principal body-slamming a middle schooler on the ground but there are still no answers from Dayton Public Schools.

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News Center 7′s Mike Campbell reported the story Monday and is still working to get answers.

He says there is more context to the four second video clip that appeared on social media showing a principal body slamming a middle schooler but Dayton Public Schools is not releasing any new information about what they might know about the incident.

News Center 7 showed the video Monday and Kendra Bonner, the parent of the teen thrown to the ground, spoke with us by phone Tuesday.

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“He slammed him like he was a grown adult,” she told News Center 7 Tuesday. “He’s only 14.”

Bonner said her son’s cousin had been threatened by several other boys.

Both she and the police report said her son tried several times to go past the principal to get to the teens and was stopped by the principal, before the action on the video took place.

Campbell reports many school surveillance cameras were placed around the outside of the building that should have recorded everything that took place.

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News Center 7 has made a public records request for that video.

“Because the images of the students in any surveillance footage would be personally identifiable, the law prohibits the District from releasing the footage,” said Dayton Public Schools in a statement. “FERPA, the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, prohibits the release of records that contain information identifying students.”

News Center 7 also asked the district on the current job status of Principal Simmons, they have not responded.

The Dayton Police report shows the 14-year-old teen had been suspended and was not supposed to be on any school property.

“My son should not have been on school property,” said Bonner. “He knows he was suspended.”

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Campbell says Bonner is not trying to pretend her son did nothing wrong. However, she had to take him to the hospital for treatment of injuries.

Bonner believes the principal was also wrong and claims she had a short interaction with the principal.

News Center 7 is working to learn more information from Dayton Public Schools and the status of their internal investigation.

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