Teacher who beat student posts bond on unrelated charge.

By ERICKA MELLON
Copyright 2010 HOUSTON CHRONICLE
May 13, 2010, 12:53PM

The Harris County charter school teacher caught on video beating up a student faces an unrelated criminal charge accusing her of using a knife to slash the tires of another woman's car, according to court documents.

Sheri Lynn Davis, 40, had a warrant for her arrest on the misdemeanor criminal mischief charge since March. The Jamie's House Charter School science teacher turned herself in and posted $1,000 bond Wednesday, a day after the video of her apparently kicking and slapping 13-year-old Isaiah Reagins went viral on the Internet.

Davis has not been charged in the April 29 beating incident, but the Harris County Sheriff's Office is investigating. Davis' attorney, Chip Lewis, declined to comment today but said he would answer questions Friday.

The Texas Education Agency is sending staff to the charter school today and plans to open an investigation.

“We particularly want to know whether this is a pervasive problem,” TEA spokeswoman Debbie Ratcliffe said.

Isaiah and his mother, Alesha Johnson, plan to file a lawsuit today against Davis and the school, according to their attorney, Brant Stogner.

“Never did we think we had to worry about teacher-on-kid bullying,” Stogner said, “but apparently we do.”

Jamie's House serves about 100 at-risk middle and high school students and is rated “academically acceptable” by the TEA. It opened as a state-approved charter school in 1999.

“There is no excuse for a teacher to behave this way with a child,” Jamie's House Principal David Jones has said in a statement. “This incident violates every principle by which we operate Jamie's House Charter School.”

Davis has taught at the school for three years and was popular with the students, according to a school spokeswoman. She is not a certified teacher but has a bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University, according to the school.

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