Officials with the L.A. Unified School District confirmed Thursday that a parent, identified as 33-year-old Kiki Lolita Fowler, and her two daughters confronted a teacher Wednesday at about 9 a.m. at John Muir Middle School. School district officials characterized the incident as a flat-out physical attack.
The trio allegedly screamed at the veteran teacher before punching and kicking her. Officials say upon hearing the commotion, school security rushed to the teacher's aid. Fowler and her daughters were arrested.
"I'm just shocked, I really am," said former teacher Randell Brown.
Brown said in all the years he taught at the middle school, he never heard of such violence on the campus.
"There has never been an incident in which a teacher has been attacked in my 31 years of working here, so I'm just shocked and appalled that that would even happen here. I can't believe it," Brown said.
LAUSD officials say Fowler was upset with the teacher regarding an issue concerning her daughter, who is a student in the teacher's classroom. They say Fowler got a visitors pass to be on the campus to set up an appointment to speak with the teacher. However, instead of leaving the campus after setting up the appointment, they say she and her daughters went to the teacher's classroom.
Soon after the teacher stepped outside of her classroom, she was attacked. The teacher was treated and is said to be OK.
"I feel this news if very upsetting," said Teresa Walker, whose twins attend John Muir Middle School. "I'm against violence totally. Violence is not the answer. You can communicate. You can talk it out. If that doesn't work, you should go to a higher authority. Go to the principal or whoever would be the next highest person to talk to."
Officials said the teacher was not at school Thursday, and letters were being sent out to parents about the incident.
Fowler was booked on felony battery on a school campus and is being held on $10,000 bail. One of her daughters was booked on the same charges, and the other daughter was booked on assault with a deadly weapon, the weapon being her feet and hand.
