A SCHOOLBOY allegedly had his mouth taped shut by his teacher after talking too much in class, his parents claim.
Mum Catherine Webster says she was mortified when her son Brady, 11, sent her a shocking selfie showing the medieval punishment.
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The disturbing image of the student at Smithfield Middle School in North Carolina shows multiple pieces of tape secured over his mouth.
His mum says the youngster was “humiliated” in front of his fellow students in his English class on February 14.
She detailed the schoolboy’s horror ordeal in an explosive Facebook post condemning his teacher, who she referred to as “Mrs. Felix”.
Catherine explained she received a text message from Brady with the chilling image alongside the words: “I don’t know what to do.”
She alleged that several layers of blue painter’s tape had been stuck over his mouth by his sixth-grade teacher.
Describing her son as a “chatterbox” with a “tendency to clown around”, the mum said he had been disciplined for talking too much.
Catherine shared a screenshot of the harrowing text exchange with Brady, where she replied: “What is that? Who did that? Is that tape? I’m on my way.”
She raced to the school where she then confronted the principal about the archaic punishment – that had allegedly been used for several months.
The mum claimed her son revealed his face had been taped by his teacher up to three times and other students would have their wrists bound together.
Catherine said she had “never met, seen or received an email” from the accused teacher regarding Brady’s behaviour in class.
Felix is reportedly an international teacher, although it is unclear where she hails from.
“His grades were good, so I had no reason to believe anything was amiss there because she never once reached out to me,” the mum explained in a Facebook post.
“‘He has a tendency to clown around and be disruptive and talk too much.
“I’m a reasonable person and a fairly strict parent with no tolerance for disrespect and an understanding that teachers do not have time for repetitive disruption, so I also discipline Brady at home when this happens.”
Catherine went on to claim that the youngster’s teacher had told investigators that the incident was “funny” and that the “children laughed when it happened.”
She explained that Brady sometimes laughs when he is uncomfortable or nervous.
The mum wrote: “Maybe he did laugh, standing in her classroom in front of 20 something classmates while she slapped strip after strip after strip (looks to be 10-12 strips, layer after layer) of blue painters’ tape across more than half of his face.”
Mrs Felix – who only began working at the Johnston County school in August last year – has since resigned from her role.
According to the Daily Mail, the former teacher has also been stripped of her visa, meaning she will no longer be able to work in the US.
The school administration launched an investigation into the allegations and reassured parents they were taking the incident extremely seriously.
Johnston County Public Schools said in a statement: “Although we cannot discuss the specifics of an investigation into alleged staff misconduct, we can confirm that whenever such allegations arise, our administration responds swiftly, by investigating the allegations and, sometimes, by removing staff from classrooms pending completion of a thorough review.
“School administrators are always able and willing to speak with any and all parents who may have concerns regarding any issue that occurs.”
The Johnston County Sheriff’s Office also investigated Brady’s claims as well as other allegations made by parents.
But after consulting with the district attorney, the sheriff’s office didn’t find proper intent to warrant an assault charge.
Catherine continued: “Just because Brady didn’t get hurt doesn’t make this less serious. I want to know who is going to be held accountable, so this doesn’t happen again.”
The mum said she hoped her Facebook post would “serve as an example” to any other teachers who may be “walking a fine line.”
She said she had waited to share her son’s story until both probes by the school and the sheriff’s office were completed.
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Olivia Burke
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