Burlington, Ia- The Burlington Police Department has released a statement regarding an incident at Burlington High School.
The statement reads, on May 10, 2021, school staff and a Burlington Police Officer, assigned as the School Resource Officer at Burlington Community High School, responded to a complaint from several students that a classmate was in possession of narcotics.
They indicated that they viewed and smelled a substance that they knew to be narcotics. The SRO and staff located narcotics that had been discarded and asked the previously identified student to follow them to the school office.
The female student refused and began to physically resist attempts to escort her from the classroom setting and to the office. During this event, the student physically struck the responding SRO.
The student was subsequently charged with Interference with Official Acts and Assault on a Peace Officer. The statement says that security and bodycam footage shows the events described in the incident.
Meanwhile, the Burlington Beacon reports that the student’s mother posted photos on social media showing bruises the girl allegedly suffered during the incident.
The student also claims that BHS principal Justin Galbraith assaulted her during the arrest by throwing her to the ground, cutting off her bookbag, and searching for narcotics which she did not have. She admitted to being searched for narcotics twice before.
Around 30 students gathered outside the high school on Friday to protest the incident.
