A teacher from Minnesota is now suing a school district after he was choked unconscious while he attempted to break up a fight in a lunchroom.
John Ekblad, a science teacher at Central High School in St Paul is suing St Paul Public Schools claiming that the district failed to keep its teachers safe.
On December 4th, Ekblad was allegedly body slammed into a cafeteria table and choked by a student as he tried to break up a fight.
The student, 16-year-old Fon’Tae O’Bannon was charged with third-degree assault for allegedly choking Ekblad until he was unconscious.
O’Bannon has since pleaded guilty to the attack in a juvenile court, the Twin Cities Pioneer Press reported.
Ekblad was hospitalized after he suffered brain damage and a concussion in the incident, according to CBS Minnesota.
He has not returned to work at the school, where he has been a physics teacher for 21 years, KSTP reported.
The law firm representing Mr Ekblad released a statement saying that the School District is aware that ‘there is a physical violence problem towards teachers in the School District by its students’.
The statement continued: ‘However, the School District has failed to properly safeguard its teachers.
‘The School District had knowledge of the harassment, violence, or assaultive behavior of its students, but did not take any appropriate disciplinary action against its students, nor did the School District take and remedial action to prevent assaultive or dangerous conduct.’
The December 4 fight reportedly broke out after two students got into an argument over who had better football stats, according to City Pages.
Read More: After Student Attack, St. Paul Teacher Plans To Sue School District
