St. Pete Teacher Accused of Striking Boca Ciega Student

Boca Ciega High School English teacher John Robert Able, of St. Petersburg, was arrested Monday afternoon on a charge of felony child abuse.

According to Det. Sgt. Robert Burkhart, the incident happened on Friday when the school already was on lockdown. Burkhart says School Resource Officers received information concerning a student allegedly bringing a gun to school.

The school was put on lockdown, and officers located the student in question and determined there was no threat and the information was a "rumor."

It was during this lockdown that witnesses say Able "struck the student and used vulgarities while in the classroom," according to Gulfport Police School Resource Officer Jason Motte.

The student's mother was notified of the incident. 

Able was placed on paid administrative leave immediately after the incident. According to Pinellas County Schools, Able has been reassigned to a worksite with no student contact while on paid administrative leave.

Melanie Marquez with Pinellas County Schools says Able was hired on Jan. 3 and was under a temporary contract to teach at Boca Ciega High School until the end of this school year. Prior to Gulfport, Able's teaching experience was with a private school in Kentucky, according to Marquez.

As of Monday afternoon, Able was at the Pinellas County Jail on $5,000 bail.

No information was provided on whether the child was injured. The student's gender and age also were not released. There are no other details at this time, with all questions referred to the Pinellas County School District.

The alleged incident occurred on the same day that a St. Petersburg man was arrested for selling marijuana to Boca Ciega students. Lemon Lane, who lives near the Gulfport school, was arrested for selling marijuana to high school students from his apartment.