NC assistant principal in wheelchair grabbed and shoved student to floor, video shows
An assistant principal at a North Carolina middle school who has since resigned said he looks “forward to sharing my side of the story” after a Facebook video showed him in a wheelchair grabbing and shoving a student to a classroom floor.
Christopher McNeil had moments earlier threatened the student in a Knox Middle School classroom, according to the video obtained by Charlotte Observer news partner WBTV.
”You keep cracking your knuckles,” McNeil tells the boy. “You do what you do because when you hit me, I’m going to beat the piss out of you, I’m telling you now. “I’m telling you what I’m going to do. I’m going to put my hands on you.”
In the video, McNeil continues to threaten the student: “I’m going to get up ... listen man .... I will beat the s--- out of you ... I’m going to wait for you to get up, and when you hit me, I’m going to lose my job, and they’re going to call the police”
Those words were prophetic: McNeil resigned on Oct. 12, Rowan-Salisbury Schools officials said in a statement, adding that “the safety of all students and staff is the highest priority.”
District officials learned of the video after a woman posted it on Facebook and asked people to share it.
After McNeil shoves the boy to the floor, McNeil and another staff member grab and take the student from the classroom, the video shows.
In a statement Wednesday, McNeil said he had “a very heavy heart” over the incident.
“I am sad for the students and teachers at Knox Middle School who I have dedicated my life to supporting and helping,” McNeil said. “I pray for their safety and success every day.”
“Many of those students have had a tough hand dealt them, and I have spent my career trying to provide love and support for students that are wrestling with many challenges they bring with them to school every day,” McNeil said in the statement.
McNeil worked at the school since June 2016, according to the district website. He worked in the district since 2005, including as a math teacher and principal intern, and later as assistant principal at Salisbury High School and then Knox Middle.
In his statement to the media, McNeil said the full story of what happened in the classroom that day hasn’t been told. He said he is seeking legal advice and hopes to respond soon “in person” to the media about what transpired.
This story was originally published October 23, 2021 at 9:01 AM.