A parent attacked a teacher at a California elementary school during a mask dispute on the first day of classes, NBC News reports.
The incident took place at Sutter Creek Elementary School in Amador County. In a statement to parents from Amador County Unified School District Superintendent Torie Gibson said that as "the first day of school comes and goes, there are always hiccups along the way, especially during this trying time."
This particular hiccup, however, came in the form of a criminal assault.
"Unfortunately, a parent took it upon himself to verbally assault a principal that led to a serious physical altercation between him and a teacher as the teacher intended to protect the principal," Gibson stated, adding that "assaulting a staff member will never be tolerated on any school campus," adding that mask "mandates are forever changing so understanding current requirements is critical."
"We are not the ones making the rules/mandates," she wrote. "We are the ones required to follow/enforce them if we want to keep our doors open and students at school five days a week."
Gibson told local news outlet KCRA that the parent became angry when he saw his daughter exit the school wearing a mask. As the parent argued with the school's principle, a teacher intervened and situation escalated into a physical confrontation, leaving the teacher bleeding.
The teacher suffered "lacerations on his face, some bruising on his a face and a pretty good knot on the back of his head," she told KCRA, adding that he was later treated and released from the hospital. The parent has been banned from the campus.