MARLBORO COUNTY, S.C. – The Marlboro County School District has made public a video footage capturing an incident where a student was placed in a headlock during a school fight.
The district revealed that the principal involved in the headlock incident sustained injuries.
In a statement issued by Superintendent Helena Tillar on Friday morning, it was explained that the student was subjected to the headlock due to his persistent attempts to engage in the altercation with another student.
The surveillance footage depicts a brawl that initiated with one student punching another in the Marlboro County High School cafeteria. Assistant principal Jason Bracey, identifiable by his blue shirt, is observed stepping in to intervene, which results in him and the two students tumbling against a barricade.
While Bracey endeavors to separate one student from the fray, the instigator of the fight continues to assault the other student until a second staff member steps in.
This intervention leads to Bracey, the second staff member, and the two students falling onto a lunch table. Both Bracey and the second staff member proceed to place the students in headlocks.
Subsequently, the second staff member escorts one of the students away, while Bracey maintains a headlock on the other student atop the lunch table until a third staff member arrives and signals to Bracey.
Tillar explains that Bracey maintained the headlock on the student despite the fight being over, as the student was still attempting to engage in combat.
While holding the student in the headlock, Bracey points towards another student who was recording the incident, and a fourth staff member can be seen gesturing for the recording to stop. The recorded video only captures Bracey employing the headlock on the student.
Tillar revealed that Bracey sustained injuries during the altercation but did not disclose the nature of the injuries.
News13 requested an interview with the district, but the request was declined. Inquiries were also made about the School Resource Officers and the cellphone policy, to which a spokesperson stated that they would only provide information from the official news release.
Additionally, an attempt to speak with the mother of the student involved in the headlock was planned, but she later opted not to participate.