Who is Michael Hosinski? Teacher charged with battery for slapping minor student
A high school teacher in Jimtown, Indiana, has reportedly been taken into custody for slapping a minor student on February 25. Reports say 61-year-old Michael Hosinski was arrested on the charge of battery by police on March 3, 2022, after being fired from his job at the Jimtown High School. Despite the strong video evidence in the case, it appears Hosinski still has the support of students, parents, and other teachers in the community.
CCTV footage shows Hosinski slapping the student in the face, but is far from the worst educators have been caught doing. In January 2022, William Bennett in Louisville, Kentucky was fired for getting into a wrestling match with a student, and allegedly saying the student "would just be another black boy shot." In November 2021, Donald Mobellini of Hazard, Kentucky came under fire for receiving lap dances from female students. He was eventually let off with a reprimand, but only after widespread anger.
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Despite being caught in the act, Hosinski found widespread support as parents pinned the incident on the larger issue of student discipline. However, one person who wasn't too happy with that narrative was the boy's father. During a school board meeting, the dad reportedly fumed at administrators and had to be escorted out.
Who is Michael Hosinski?
The 61-year-old has reportedly been teaching for 40 years and even received the Teacher of the Year in 2020 award. He reportedly taught social studies and lived in Osceola. Reports say back in 2019, the Northern Indiana Atheists wanted to file a complaint against Hosinski after he told a class "Hillary and Obama are criminals, President Donald Trump is great, and Democrats are liars."
Little else is known about Hosinski, who was allowed to retire with full pension following the incident. Shortly after he slapped the student, Hosnski was barred from the school. Early reports claimed he was fired, but on February 26, the school said in a statement that they had approved early retirement instead. It is believed Hosnski was set to retire in June 2022 anyway, and that the incident led the school to expedite that to March 2022. He also received his full pension as a result, despite the strong video evidence against him.
On February 25, the teacher was seen running after a student in the hallway. After catching up to him, Hosinski pushes him against the wall and waves a finger at his face. He is then seen slapping the student's face, causing the child's head to hit the wall. He then begins to escort the student, who falls down. Hosinski then leaves him there are walks away. A press release from the school says the confrontation was sparked by the student's hoodie but did not provide more details. It also said the student needed "immediate medical attention" for injuries.
Michael Hosinski has finally been arrested.#Indiana pic.twitter.com/m7EbkBIux1
— IND Progressives (@INDprogressives) March 4, 2022
Community backs Hosinski
On February 28, dozens of students at the school reportedly staged a walkout in support of the teacher, and around that time a Facebook page was created for the same purpose, but later deleted. A Change.org petition garnered over 1,000 signatures as well. One local, Terry Hilyard told USA Today, "When you're talking about ... blame. It's a shared thing, the administration, the high school, and the board."
Tanner Clark, a former student of Hosinksi added, "That is the video of a man who lost his cool and made a mistake, but mistakes can be rectified over time." At the school board meeting too, several parents backed the teacher and claimed staff faced a lack of support against indisciplined students. Despite that support though, it appears Hosinksi is now in legal trouble. On March 3, he was arrested on the preliminary charge of battery, a level 6 felony.
If found guilty, Hosinski faces between six months to two and a half years in prison, and a fine of up to $10,000. Further information is not yet available at the moment.
