Lawsuit: Wall Township teacher forced fourth grader into a closet for laughing in class
The lawsuit says the girl was in the closet for two to three minutes as other students watched, laughed and made faces at her.
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A family is suing Central Elementary School in Wall Township, claiming a teacher forced their daughter into a storage closet for laughing in a music class.
Court documents reveal the incident happened on April 8, 2022, and the girl was in fourth grade during the 2021-22 school year.
Two teachers are named in the lawsuit. The documents state one of the teachers moved a drum set from the closet and then forced the girl to enter the closet. Once the girl was in the closet, the teacher then walked out and left the girl alone unsupervised in the closet.
The lawsuit says the girl was in the closet for two to three minutes as other students watched, laughed and made faces at her. The girl then opened the door herself to let herself out when she saw the rest of the class leaving the classroom.
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Following the incident, the suit states a classmate repeatedly ridiculed the girl, referring to her as the “closet girl.”
The family says the now 11-year-old girl suffers from anxiety. They say they found out about the incident the following day from another parent whose child was in the same class.
One teacher apparently told a student to delete a recording of the incident. The teachers are no longer listed on the school's website.
News 12 New Jersey has reached out to the district for comment but has not heard back.
