PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A North Philadelphia mother says her 12-year-old son was assaulted by a staff member at KIPP Philadelphia Preparatory Academy on Monday, leaving him with facial injuries and a missing tooth.
Montrena Bennett says her son, 7th grader Peyton Outlaw, was hurt after a confrontation with a school employee.
"My son wanted to use the bathroom, and apparently, he wouldn't allow him to use the bathroom on his lunch break. So, my son tried to go around," Bennett said. "He put my son in a headlock. My son got away, and then my son swung on him. So then (the staff member) swung back. They say my son flew across the room and his tooth fell out his mouth."
Outlaw now has a swollen lip, a missing tooth, and multiple stitches. Bennett said he'll need a root canal for another tooth that came loose after the altercation.
"He didn't fall. He didn't hurt himself. He got punched by a man twice his size," Bennett said.
Bennett says she never received a phone call from the school about the incident. Neither did Outlaw's father nor other emergency contacts. She says they learned what happened from the parent of another student.
"He said when it first happened, he was crying out for his dad. And he asked several times for them, you know, to call his dad. And they just ignored him," Bennett said.
When Bennett arrived at the school, she said her son's face was bloody and partially hidden by a mask.
"I took the mask off, I almost fainted," she said. "His lip was up here, his face was swollen, and he had blood dripping down because they, of course, can't stop it because he needed stitches."
"The cops should have been called, my son should have went to the ambulance instead of to the nurse's office," she continued. "They had his tooth in a little box and a note that the nurse sent home. Couple of abrasions, tooth missing."
She said her son has been diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and has an individualized education plan.
"They don't process information like we do, and it makes them irate, I will say. But if you just leave him alone, he'll calm down," Bennett said. "And they're aware of that. So I don't know how this escalated so far."
In a message sent to families, the school's principal called the incident "deeply concerning," saying, "this behavior is unacceptable and stands in direct opposition to our values and expectations. ... The student's family was contacted immediately, and we took swift action to remove the staff member from campus."
In a statement to Action News on Wednesday, a school spokesperson said in part, "Following an initial investigation, the staff member has been terminated. We continue to fully cooperate with the Philadelphia Police Department and the appropriate authorities to ensure transparency and accountability at every step."
Bennett said she'd like to see more accountability.
"That's not enough for me. He lost a job. My son is gonna have to have therapy. I don't think it's fair, I don't think it's fair at all," she said. "That man went home, my son went to the hospital."
Bennett says she has filed a police report and hired a lawyer.
"I'm not saying, oh, my son was right for punching, you know, swinging at a teacher. But what I'm saying is teachers or deans or anybody in that school system is supposed to be able to handle themselves when it comes to a situation like that," she said. "We as parents trust these people in these positions to make sure that our kids are safe."
It's unclear if the staff member will face any charges.