NJ Gym Teacher Slammed 11-Year-Old Student To The Ground, Dragged Him By Collar, Lawsuit Says

SUSSEX COUNTY, NJ — The father of an 11-year-old boy is suing a Sussex County school district after his son was forcibly pushed to the ground and dragged out of a gymnasium by a teacher, according to the suit.

The suit cites an incident from October 2025 at Sparta Middle School.

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According to the suit, the man’s son was involved in an altercation with another student during a physical education class.

The gym teacher in charge “seized” one of the students, the man’s son, using force that was “objectively unreasonable and grossly disproportionate to the circumstances,” forcing him to the ground, the suit says.

With the student on the floor, the teacher, in a “threatening and intimidating posture,” stood over the boy and pointed a finger in his face, according to the claim. It adds that the boy was grabbed by the collar and forcibly removed from the gymnasium by the teacher.

The boy’s father learned of the incident the following day and met with the principal of Sparta Middle School. He was told that the incident was under investigation, the suit reads. He also filed a report with the Sparta Police Department, which affirmed it was aware of the incident, the claim says.

According to the suit, the entire altercation was caught on camera, with the video shown to the father. However, the school has refused to turn it over to attorneys, the claim reads.

The New Jersey Department of Children and Families, Institutional Abuse Investigation Unit found that evidence of abuse/neglect was “not established,” which “by definition indicates the evidence did not meet the preponderance standard for abuse/neglect, but that the evidence nonetheless indicates the child was harmed or placed at risk of harm,” the suit reads.

The gym teacher was put on leave during the investigation, and returned to work weeks later without “restrictions, safeguards, remedial training, supervision measures, or other corrective actions sufficient to protect students from recurrence,” the suit reads.

The 11-year-old suffered “physical pain and injury and experienced fear, distress, and emotional trauma,” from the altercation, the suit reads.

The boy’s father is suing the school, its Board of Education, and the gym teacher for several claims, including excessive force and municipal liability.

Patch has reached out to the Sparta Board of Education, which was not immediately available with a response.