News Update

Family of Black student sues school district, claiming teacher pulled him by hoodie

The family of a middle school student has sued the Brentwood Union School District in Contra Costa County, alleging that a white substitute teacher singled out the student because he is Black and pulled him by his sweatshirt hood, the Mercury News reported.

A judge rejected two motions to dismiss the case.

The incident allegedly occurred in 2019, when the student, who was 12 at the time, was standing with friends during a seventh-grade science class when the substitute grabbed him by his hood and dragged him back to his desk.

The substitute no longer works for the district. Attorneys for the district did not respond to the newspaper’s requests for comments, but in an October hearing said the incident did not meet the definition of racial discrimination, according to the report.