News - Local/State

Tuesday, Mar. 13, 2007

Sullivan Middle school teacher charged with assaulting student

Sullivan Middle School teacher David Coker was arrested this morning and charged with assault and battery.

York County Magistrate Bob Davenport issued the warrant for Coker’s arrest at 8:30 a.m. following a series of allegations on Coker’s conduct at the school.

According to a Rock Hill police report, a 6th-grade boy saw sex paraphernalia on the teacher's desk March 6.

After Coker caught the boy staring at it, he put the item away, the report stated. He later accosted the boy around 2 p.m. during a fire drill, the report stated.

The boy said Coker grabbed him by the arm and said, "You don't want me to hurt you. You know I can hurt you," the report stated.

The warrant was issued after the boy's mother signed an affidavit listing the allegations. The York County’s Sheriff’s Office made the arrest.

The Rock Hill police relinquished the case because the mother is a city employee, police spokesman Lt. Jerry Waldrop said Monday.

The teacher also was named in another Rock Hill police report, filed Jan. 4, that said a student claimed to have seen pornography on the teacher's desk.