Central NY elementary teacher accused of slapping child charged, put on leave

Editor’s note: This article updated Tuesday evening after police announced the teacher’s arrest.
North Syracuse, NY – A Cicero Elementary School teacher has been arrested after she was accused of slapping a 5-year-old girl in the arm, police said.
Kindergarten teacher Margaret Bautista-Smith, 58, of Central Square was charged after Cicero police investigated a use of force incident at the school last week, police said in a news release Tuesday.
Last Tuesday, a school patrol officer was informed of a teacher using physical force against the 5-year-old student in a classroom during school hours, police said.
They later learned that Bautista-Smith had slapped the student in the arm causing redness and swelling, they said. The student was taken to the school nurse and school administrators were immediately notified. The child did not need further medical attention, they said.
After gathering more information and talking with the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office, Bautista-Smith was charged Monday with endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, police said.
She has been placed on paid administrative leave, North Syracuse Interim School Superintendent Michael Schieido said in a statement to families today.
Bautista-Smith was given an appearance ticket for Cicero Town Court on Dec. 17.
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