MILWAUKEE - Video of a teen being shoved to the floor, allegedly by a teacher's aide, went viral last month. Now, that teacher's aide has entered a plea of not guilty. If you saw the video from Bay View High School and already have an opinion based on that, the aide's defense attorney says hold on. He says there's so much more than what's on the video.
Milwaukee Public Schools ended up firing Jasmine Pennix for what happened in that freshman biology class that was caught on cell phone video.
“I do not believe the video shows the whole story," said Steve Kohn, defense attorney.
Pennix appeared in court with his attorney Steve Kohn Tuesday afternoon, waiving a preliminary hearing and pleading not guilty.
“The video doesn’t show the whole incident. It doesn’t show the beginning. It does not show the end, and there is a lot to be discussed before we get to what actually happened," said Kohn.
What the criminal complaint says happened is that several students were "ripping on each other" when the teacher's aide stepped in, pulling out the chair from one teen, then shoving the student, and putting his hands around the student's neck.
Right now, Pennix is out on bond but being monitored by the courts. Kohn plans to ask the judge to do away with that service from Justice Point.
"They often times deal with individuals who have drug or alcohol issues. He doesn’t have those," said Kohn.
The student in this case was treated at St. Mary's Hospital for injuries to his neck, back, and hips. Pennix is due back in court on child abuse charges June 3.
