Teacher Chrishawn Nicholson, 25, is facing child abuse charges after allegedly hitting a 5-year-old boy with a ruler at Aspire Preparatory Academy in Miami Gardens, Florida.
The incident occurred on November 19, 2024, and the evidence presented includes videos and statements that appear to confirm the assault. Although the teacher was arrested on January 9, 2025, the judge allowed her to continue teaching on the premise that it could be an isolated case, WVSN reported.
According to police documents, Nicholson called the boy’s mother on November 19 to inform her that her son had accidentally cut himself while playing with a pencil. However, when he was taken to the hospital, doctors determined that the injury, located near his eyebrow, was not consistent with a pencil accident. The boy required stitches due to the depth of the cut.
On the way to the hospital, the boy confessed to his mother that the teacher had hit him with a ruler, a version he later reiterated to investigators. He also showed how he had been hit during an interview with the Florida Department of Children and Families, NBC South Florida reported.
The boy’s mother presented a video taken shortly after the incident, in which her son claims that Nicholson hit him with a ruler. Additionally, during the investigation, another video was revealed in which Nicholson allegedly admits to having hit him, saying: “I did pop him,” various media outlets such as CBS reported.
Miami Gardens police requested Nicholson’s presence on January 9, the day she was arrested after refusing to testify during her interrogation. She was transferred to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, where bail was set at $5,000, according to authorities.
The case went to court on January 10, where Judge Mindy S. Glazer decided not to ban Nicholson from working in her profession, arguing that the incident could be isolated. However, she was ordered to stay away from the minor and the Aspire Preparatory Academy school, according to reports from various local media.
During the hearing, the boy’s mother expressed her outrage, stressing that the injury was dangerously close to her son’s eye. “If I had hit him in the eye, he would have been blind for the rest of his life,” she said in an interview with WSVN.
For his part, Nicholson’s defense attorney downplayed the events, calling them a “small mistake” and requested a release without bail due to the teacher’s financial difficulties. However, the judge denied this request and maintained the $5,000 bail, the media reported.
So far, school authorities at Aspire Preparatory Academy have not issued official comments on the case. The lack of statements has raised questions about classroom safety measures and protocols for reporting child abuse, local media reported.
The boy’s mother said the impact of the incident is not just physical, but emotional as well. She said her son has been traumatized by the experience, leaving scars that go beyond the visible wound. “This was not just a minor blow; this wound required stitches and has left a permanent mark,” she told WSVN. The case remains under investigation, with authorities reviewing the evidence presented while the educational community remains attentive to the outcome.
