Teacher says he can't file charges after HISD claims student didn't hurt him, and remains in class

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A Houston ISD teacher said he was shoved by a student, and isn't happy with how the situation was handled.

Scarborough High School teacher Zach Dowling said the love he feels for educating at the campus is tarnished after what happened this week.

"I've been there for three years," Dowling said. "I love it. It's the best school I've been at, but when you have one bad apple that's allowed to get away with things, it kind of resonates throughout the school."

On Wednesday, Dowling said he was assaulted by a student. It happened after he went to report the student who he said wouldn't finish an assignment.

"As soon as I'm walking to the button, I hear his chair slide, and I know he's getting up," Dowling recalled. "I don't turn around yet. I hit the button, and as soon as I turned around the kid was on top of me already."

Seconds later, he couldn't believe what happened next.

"He just shoves me, and behind me, there's a table that's halfway between my knee and thigh," Dowling recalled. "I fell onto the table and onto the printer."

Dowling said he told administrators he wanted to press charges. He met with an HISD officer, who he said contacted the district attorney's office but declined to accept charges because he wasn't hurt.

The DA's office told ABC13 that there was no record of that call. An HISD spokesperson said an investigation took place.

They determined the teacher wasn't physically assaulted. However, the student was disciplined but wouldn't say why.

Dowling said he was shoved, and a class full of students witnessed it. He also claims this isn't the first incident involving this student.

Recently, he said the same teen was involved in an incident involving a different teacher. He said these issues have taken the joy away from teaching at Scarborough High School.

"Nobody wants to go to work and worry about being attacked at work," Dowling said. "I feel that at any other district in America, the kid's apprehended, and it's dealt with immediately."

Eyewitness News reached out to the district about the second incident and asked how they were certain no physical altercation had taken place.

ABC13 has yet to hear back from the district.

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