CHINA GROVE – A parent is facing charges after allegedly refusing to leave their child’s elementary school’s field day event on Tuesday.
According to a release from China Grove Police Chief Andrew Deal, officers responded to China Grove Elementary School around 9:40 a.m. after a parent, identified as Justin Morgan, reportedly refused to leave despite being asked by the principal to do so.
Field day activities were taking place at the time. Reports indicated that Morgan allegedly grabbed two students by their arm, claiming that he was protecting other children from them.
A teacher and the principal intervened at which point Morgan reportedly became “belligerent” and “caused more of a disturbance.”
The release said that Morgan also grabbed the teacher and the principal during the exchange. Officers arrived from China Grove as well as the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office and located the accused in the school’s bus parking lot, where he was taken into custody after an exchange described as a brief struggle.
Emergency crews responded and treated Morgan for an injury before transporting him to the Rowan County Magistrate’s Office, where he was charged with multiple offenses: two counts of assault on a school employe, two counts of assault on a child under 12, disorderly conduct by disrupting school, disorderly conduct by abusive language, resisting ,obstruct and delay an officer and two counts of ethnic intimidation.
Addressing the situation to families of the student body, Principal Leslie Sechler said in a message: “Our school went into a lockdown at approximately 9:30 am due to a volatile parent on our campus during Field Day. The parent was asked to leave; he refused and became physically aggressive with school staff and endangered two students. He then engaged in a physical fight with responding to local law enforcement. Students were quickly moved back into the building when the lockdown began.”
Sechler indicated that the school entered what is called a hold and teach, allowing students to be in their classrooms to get calm before resuming the day.
“The lockdown lasted approximately one hour,” Sechler’s message said. “The parent was quickly contained, but the school remained in lockdown until he was removed from campus by law enforcement who responded to the lockdown.”
Sechler’s message concluded: “Student safety is the highest priority for Rowan-Salisbury Schools, and we are all working diligently every day to ensure the safety of children. Working together allows us to provide the very best for our community.”
