Confrontation Between Fayetteville Student, Teacher Debated

Rashad Lock is locked up at Cumberland County's juvenile hall. He is suspended from school and charged with assault.

"I was like, 'Why, why are you arresting him?' " said Rashad's mother, Glenda Lock. "I mean, he's the one with the scars and the bruises. He went to the hospital."

Glenda Lock admits he threw punches, but accuses the teacher of doing the same -- something that has not been confirmed.

"I feel like she should be suspended too until they finish investigating," she said.

Whatever happened occurred at Douglas Byrd Middle School. According to officials, Lock was in in-school suspension at the time. Investigators believe he was acting up when another teacher walked in.

Detectives say the teacher, 38-year-old Audrey Pipkin, took him to the office. He then alleged attacked her and tore her shirt open. However, Glenda Lock insists her son took the beating.

"I could not press charges on this lady because she had pressed charges on my son first," she said.

When asked if she would have pressed charges against Pipkin, Glenda Lock said, "Yes, I would. You should see my son's body. Yes, I would."

In the meantime, Rashad Lock waits in jail, away from family and Pipkin. He will get a chance to tell his side of the story soon in court. Lock is scheduled to go before a judge Tuesday.

Douglas Byrd administrators will not discuss the case, and the school system's central office would not comment to WRAL. There is no word why Lock was originally in suspension.

Attacks on teachers by their students is not unheard of, although rare. Between 1999 and 2003, 65,000 teachers were victims of a variety of crimes, including assault, rape, and robbery.

Those statistics show male teachers were targeted by students more frequently than female teachers, and high school teachers more likely to be assaulted than those in elementary and middle schools.