Steve Burns
WMAL.com
FAIRFAX – (WMAL) The teacher who reportedly forced a student to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance and told him to stay outside for a half hour has been removed from the classroom, according to a statement from Fairfax County Public Schools.
Superintendent Scott Braband said the actions of the Centreville High School teacher, named by the student’s attorneys as Richard Ferrick, violated long-standing school policy.
Attorneys for Eric Trammel, 15, say he has been sitting for the pledge since he was in the eighth grade, two years ago, after encountering the Black Lives Matter movement. But this past November, when Ferrick noticed Trammel sitting during the pledge during the second day of his drivers education class, they say he was forcibly removed from his desk.
“He continued to sit, Mr. Ferrick grew visibly upset, told him he needed to stand, and yanked him out of the room,” Trammel family attorney Maxwelle Sokole told WMAL. “He was made to stand in the cold for about a half hour.”
Sokole said a lawsuit is being prepared, alleging Ferrick violated Trammel’s free speech rights. She also said they will likely claim a violation of the Equal Protection Clause, as Ferrick allegedly told Trammel “this isn’t the NFL” during the incident.
“Eric is African-American. Mr. Ferrick is white,” Sokole said. “To our thinking, that implicates the Equal Protection Clause.”
An attorney for Ferrick told the Washington Post the claims are “without merit” but declined further comment.
Copyright 2017 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (Photo: Fairfax County Public Schools)
