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In a press conference held at the Vance County Courthouse earlier today, District Attorney Mike Waters announced the former school resource officer involved in last week’s assault on a Vance County Middle School student faces misdemeanor charges.
The officer, identified as Warren Durham of Warren County, is charged with misdemeanor assault on a child under 12, misdemeanor child abuse and willful failure to discharge his duties. All three charges carry a maximum penalty of 120 days in jail, according to Waters.
Fired from the Vance County Sheriff’s Office on Monday, Durham avoided felony charges due to the lack of serious bodily injury sustained by the student. Waters said while he was thankful that the child was not seriously harmed, the lack of injury limited the nature of the charges under current NC law.
In a video capturing the December 12 incident, Durham and the student can be seen walking down the school’s hallway. The deputy then turns to the student, picks him up, drops him to the ground and then repeats the process before dragging him down the hallway.
Waters said that he discussed the charges with the student’s family prior to the press conference and is aware that they are “disappointed and frustrated that this is not a felony case.”
When asked what led up to the assault, Waters said he did not know, and it did not matter. “I don’t think that there’s any kind of training or anything like that that would lead someone to act in that way with an 11-year-old.”
Vance County Schools Superintendent Dr. Anthony Jackson addressed the community and the media in a separate press conference held yesterday, referring to the incident as an “unacceptable and egregious act.”
“As a school system, as an administrator, as a district, we are disappointed; as a community we are embarrassed. Most of all, we want to express our apologies to our community that this has occurred. We are better than this. This child deserved better than this. No child deserves to be treated in this manner.”
Jackson stated that the school system is providing support to the school, the student and his family and is modifying its agreement with the Vance County Sheriff’s Office in order to review all protocols and procedures moving forward.