Teacher killed at Texas high school; teen held

[samanthajane13]

By JOHN McFARLAND and LINDA STEWART BALL, Associated Press Writers John Mcfarland And Linda Stewart Ball, Associated Press Writers – 15 mins ago

TYLER, Texas – A special-education teacher who had a passion for music was fatally stabbed Wednesday morning in a Texas high school classroom, and police took a 16-year-old student into custody.

Todd R. Henry, 50, worked with students at John Tyler High School who were either emotionally or behaviorally challenged, according to his older brother, Jody Henry.

"He loved it," the elder Henry said. "He told me it was his calling. He had never been happier than when working with these kids."

District Superintendent Randy Reid said the male suspect approached his teacher about 8:50 a.m. and stabbed him in the neck with a sharp object. A teacher's aide and two other students were in the classroom, and the aide subdued the suspect before calling district police, Reid said.

Reid said the student had been in and out of the district "a couple of times," but declined to provide further details, citing privacy laws.

"It is our understanding at this time that there was nothing in the classroom that incited this situation," Reid said. "It was a random act."

The high school was locked down after the stabbing and students were eventually sent home for the day, according to a statement on the district's Web site. Reid said classes would resume Thursday.

Jan Shaw Henry, the teacher's wife of 10 months, said he had been injured by a student before. Todd Henry missed the first two weeks of school recovering from shoulder surgery after he broke up a fight at school last year, his wife said.

"He worked in a prison for 10 years. Do you think this man was afraid? Get real," Jan said in a telephone interview from her Tyler home, surrounded by close friends and family. "We'd be eating out and a student would walk up and shake his hand. He'd look at me and smile and say, 'That's what it's all about.'"

Police did not offer a motive behind the stabbing and referred further questions to Angela Jenkins, a school district spokeswoman.

Jenkins said about 2,000 students attend John Tyler High and the district will provide additional support, security, and counseling for students and staff as needed.

She said Todd Henry began working for the district in 2003 at a school for special needs students and transferred to the high school four years ago.

Late Wednesday afternoon only a few cars remained in the parking lot, and all entrances were blocked off with heavy steel barriers.

Those who lived and worked nearby said they were stunned to learn of the slaying.

"Nothing like this has ever happened here as far as I know," said Don Dozier, a custodian for 15 years at Westwood Baptist Church next to the school.

The stabbing stunned the tight-knit community of 110,000, located about 90 miles southeast of Dallas.

"It's quite a shock," said city of Tyler Communications Director Susan Guthrie, who received a text message from the police chief soon after the stabbing. "Everybody was very shocked and saddened by the news."

Tyler Mayor Barbara Bass interrupted the morning City Council meeting to observe a moment of silence, Guthrie said. The school board planned an emergency meeting Wednesday afternoon.

Henry, a native of Chicago, grew up in Huntsville, Texas, after his family moved there in 1973. He was a confirmed bachelor until he married Jan, also an educator.

Henry earned a degree in psychology with an emphasis in music therapy, working for at least a decade as a music therapist, mainly with inmates in the state's prison system, his wife said.

He was self-taught on several string instruments, played in several bands on the weekends and did some studio work.

"He was an amazing guitar player and just an all-around great guy," said Matt Robb, minister of instrumental music at Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler, where Todd Henry filled in on guitar for the church orchestra. "He was so gifted. Music was like his first language.

"When he picked up that guitar you could tell that it came from his heart and soul. It brought so much joy to his life and joy to the people who heard him play."

On his Web site, Todd Henry gave an inkling of how powerful he believed music to be. "I know that music can be a direct link to feelings and passions and is therefore a powerful tool," he wrote.

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Linda Stewart Ball reported from Dallas. Associated Press writers Diana Heidgerd and Schuyler Dixon in Dallas contributed to this report.

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On the Net:

http://www.tylerisd.org


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090923/...eacher_stabbed

[samanthajane13]

Attorney: Stabbing suspect 'mentally disturbed'

By SCHUYLER DIXON, Associated Press Writer Schuyler Dixon, Associated Press Writer – 21 mins ago

TYLER, Texas – A 16-year-old student accused of stabbing his teacher to death at a Texas high school has a "lengthy history" of mental illness, his attorney said Thursday.

Jim Huggler said he planned to seek a competency hearing after a juvenile judge ruled Thursday that there was probable cause for a murder charge. The boy has not been formally charged by Smith County District Attorney Matt Bingham, who has declined to comment on the case.

The student was ordered held until another detention hearing Oct. 5.

He was bound and shackled and dressed in an orange jail jumpsuit when he appeared in Smith County juvenile court Thursday afternoon in Tyler. He appeared to answer questions in a subdued voice inaudible to witnesses.

"What we're dealing with is a young man who is mentally disturbed, who has a long history of mental illness," Huggler said. "It's a bad, horrible situation for everyone involved."

He declined to elaborate further on the boy's mental illness history.

Huggler said authorities were still "very early in this process." He said Bingham would have to petition the juvenile court once the prosecutor decides how to pursue the case.

"It'll be a lengthy investigation by law enforcement and the district attorney's office," Huggler said.

A makeshift memorial surrounded a flagpole at John Tyler High School as classes resumed under tight security a day after the slaying of Todd Henry. The 50-year-old special education teacher was attacked in a classroom Wednesday and later died.

A card was nestled among a few bouquets that encircled the base of the flagpole.

"To a man that had a heart for the kids and music. May you rest in peace and may God be with you," read one card signed by three people.

A vigil was planned Thursday night across the street from the high school at Westwood Baptist Church, where the U.S. flag was flying at half-staff.

Angela Jenkins, a spokeswoman for the Tyler Independent School District, said in a statement that the entire school district police force was on the John Tyler campus during the school day, along with four Tyler police officers and six Smith County sheriff's deputies.

The deputies parked their trucks in the school lot and stood watch nearby before classes started. Other uniformed officers were seen along sidewalks in front of the school.

Jenkins said Principal Carol Saxenian began the day with a moment of silence and "reassured students that what occurred ... was a random act by an individual student."

One student, 17-year-old junior Tambria Moore, disagreed with the district's decision to hold classes a day after the stabbing.

"I didn't think the school was safe yesterday, and I don't think it's safe today," Moore said. "I think it's stupid to have your school still open and available for students when a murder just happened at school."

Tyler schools Superintendent Randy Reid said Wednesday that a student approached Henry around 8:50 a.m. and stabbed him in the neck with a sharp object. A teacher's aide and two other students were in the classroom, and the aide subdued the suspect, Reid said.

Authorities have not offered a motive in the slaying. A police spokesman referred comment to the school district and prosecutors.

Tyler is about 90 miles southeast of Dallas.

Reid tried Thursday to reassure residents who have complained about lax security at the school that the campus had "a significant level of security" before the stabbing. He said the district was considering extra measures to address security concerns.

Student attendance was off about 9 percent Thursday, Reid said. The granddaughter of 57-year-old Essie James was among those who stayed home.

"She's been kind of moping around," James said.

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On the Net:

http://www.tylerisd.org


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090924/...eacher_stabbed