Accused of false imprisonment and defamation, a teacher fights back

A teacher accused in a lawsuit of false imprisonment and defamation is fighting back.

Jessica Webb, a second-grade teacher at the Palmetto Academy of Learning and Success, denied the allegations in court documents filed Thursday.

In a complaint filed April 13, plaintiffs Michael and Lisa Skinner accused Horry County Schools and a second-grade teacher of false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation and civil rights violations.

Webb applied for her job in 2012, according to her employment application. She is still listed as a teacher on the school’s website and school principal Courtney Fancher said she was “unaware of any termination of Mrs. Webb.”

The Skinners allege in the complaint that their 7-year-old daughter was a student at the charter school “Palmetto Academy School” [sic] when Webb “disciplined (her) for some unknown reason,” sometime between the beginning of the 2016-17 school year and March 28.

According to the complaint, the girl was “singled out” to sit on the floor to complete her classwork while other students sat at their desks.

The discipline allegedly went on for 30 days against their daughter’s will and “essentially ostracized” the girl, who allegedly showed signs of depression, suffered humiliation, lowered self-image, a decline in her grades, mental and emotional damages and other maladies, according to the complaint.

The complaint alleged that the discipline was “so extreme as to exceed all bounds of decency in a civilized society” and alleged that the action also was a civil rights violation because it “greatly impaired or deprived plaintiff, … of her right to an education.”

Webb denied in court documents all the allegations of false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation and civil rights violations and said she was not an agent nor an employee of Horry County Schools.

Webb’s attorney, Michael Smith, said he couldn’t talk about a pending court case but said that Mrs. Webb denies all allegations.

Horry County Schools also was served but has not yet answered the complaint, according to court documents.

School district spokeswoman Teal Britton said in a previous interview the district is the fiscal agent for the school, but is not involved in operating the school or hiring and training teachers.

Britton and Webb could not be reached for comment, nor could the Skinners or the Skinners’ attorney, William Stuart Duncan.

This story was originally published May 16, 2017 at 5:36 PM with the headline "Accused of false imprisonment and defamation, a teacher fights back."