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School Board security guard Reggie Hilts escorts teacher Deyshia Hargrave out of the school board meeting in handcuffs on Monday night. She was brought to the Abbeville Police Department and booked.

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Deyshia Hargrave had a picture taken of her at the Abbeville Police Department after she was booked.

Kaplan teacher arrested, escorted out of meeting in handcuffs

A Vermilion Parish teacher found herself being escorted out of the school board meeting in handcuffs after she was arrested by a school board security guard.

Deyshia Hargrave, a teacher at Rene Rost Middle School, stood up and had a question for Superintendent Jerome Puyau during superintendent comments at the end of the meeting.

Hargrave wanted to know how Puyau can accept a new three-year  contract that came with  a $30,000 raise at a time when no other school employee will be getting a raise anytime soon.

“I have a serious issue with a superintendent or any person in  position of leadership getting any type of raise. This is a slap in the face to all the teachers, cafeteria workers or any other support staff,” said Rene Rost teacher Deyshia Hagrave who stood up in the audience   and made a comment after the board awarded Puyau a new contract with a raise.  “We work very hard with very little to maintain  the salaries that we have.”

She reminded the  school board and Puyau that it was the teachers and students who have met state goals, yet they have not gotten a raise.

“It is a sad, sad day to be a teacher in Vermilion Parish,” she added. “At the top,  that is not where kids learn. It is in the classrooms. We are not getting a dime from that. That is unspeakable.”

Not long after her comments,  Puyau began to address her questions while Hargrave stood. While this was going on, Reggie Hilts the school board security guard, approached Hargrave and told her to  leave the meeting.

She tried to make her point to the security guard that she had the floor,  and Puyau was giving her an answer.

Reggie replied, “You are going to leave, or I am going to remove you,” while putting his hand on his handcuffs.

It is not known if Reggie was told to escort Hargrave out of the room or he did it on his own.

Reggie asked her to leave again and began to grab her arm. She pulled back and said, “Don’t put your hands on me.”

Hargrave walked out into the hall and Reggie followed.  Something occurred  in the hall, and five-foot tall Hargrave fell to her knees and  Reggie put the handcuffs on her, then arrested her in the hall as the meeting continued.  He escorted her to his squad car and then radioed the Abbeville Police Department to send a patrol unit. When the unit arrived,  Reggie escorted her into the unit and then the unit drove off to the Abbeville Police Station

An hour after the meeting was over, Puyau said no charges will be filed against Hargrave.

She was booked into the Abbeville Police Department and a mug shot of her was taken at the police department.  She bonded out that night.  

The Abbeville Police Department has released this statement: “In response to the numerous requests for the teacher’s booking information, the Abbeville Police Department is cooperating as directed by law. The Abbeville Police Department did not arrest the teacher.  

Due to the location of her arrest and the arresting agency’s jurisdiction, which includes the city limits of Abbeville, she was booked in and bonded from the local police department.”

The city police will also not be pressing charges against Hargrave. 

 

 

Vermilion Today

Abbeville Meridional

318 N. Main St.
Abbeville, LA 70510
Phone: 337-893-4223
Fax: 337-898-9022

The Kaplan Herald

219 North Cushing Avenue
Kaplan, LA 70548

The Gueydan Journal

311 Main Street
Gueydan, LA 70542