Battery Charge Against Carrie Benito Dropped

DEERFIELD, IL - A misdemeanor battery charge against a popular Deerfield High School Spanish teacher has been dropped.

Evidence of the guilt of Carrie Benito, charged in Dec. for allegedly placing her hands around the neck of a student during class, was not sufficient to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt - a spokeswoman for Lake County State’s Attorney Michael Nerheim told the Deerfield Review. A review of additional reports not available to the Prosecutor’s office at the initial time of Benito’s arrest led to the decision not to move forward with prosecution.

A student in one of Benito’s class alerted police to the alleged incident on Dec. 18, exactly one month to the day of occurrence. When word of the charges surfaced, more than 2,400 people signed a change.org petition urging Nerheim to drop the charge. Support for Benito came from former and current students in addition to other members of the community.

more via the Deerfield Review