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Florida teacher charged with battery after video allegedly shows him carry student out of classroom

Posted at 11:50 AM, Jan 10, 2020
and last updated 2020-01-10 13:12:36-05

Police arrested a teacher in Florida Wednesday after a video allegedly showed him pick up a student, carry the student to the door, and shove him into the hallway.

Jeffrey Paffumi, a 47-year-old teacher at Buddy Taylor Middle School in Palm Coast, was arrested and charged with battery, according to WESH-TV. Jacksonville.com reports that Paffumi was released without bail Thursday morning.

According to WESH, the incident happened Tuesday morning when a 14-year-old student was playing music on his laptop. Paffumi then reportedly took the student's laptop away.

Video of the incident shows the aftermath of the argument, as Paffumi marches toward the student.

"Show me how tough you are, you want to call me an (expletive) cracker?" he allegedly asks as he carried the boy in a half-nelson out of the classroom. The man then shoves the boy into the hallway.

The boy's parents contacted police and pressed charges after seeing the video Tuesday evening.

In a Thursday court appearance, a judge ordered Paffumi not have contact with the student and to abstain from drugs and alcohol until his next court appearance in February.

According to Jacksonville.com, Paffumi pleaded no contest to a battery charge in 2012. He was ordered to pay $525 in restitution.

Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.