Teacher from Pflugerville allegedly broke a student's fingers

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas — According to an affidavit, a Pflugerville elementary school teacher is accused of breaking the fingers of a five-year-old student.

McKinzie Merrell, a teacher at Pflugerville Elementary School, allegedly bent the child's fingers backward, resulting in fractures of the right little finger and ring finger.

The incident reportedly occurred on September 4. The child, Noah Moore, has autism.

“Our son’s voice was not heard when he needed it,” said Donte Moore, the child’s father.

It was about 10:20 a.m. on the 4th — lunchtime at Pflugerville Elementary School — when, according to court documents, Merrell struggled with Noah to enter the cafeteria.

Investigators said although surveillance video does not support this claim, Merrell testified that Noah kicked her; in response, Merrell allegedly bent his fingers backward and applied pressure, breaking two fingers on his right hand.

The Pflugerville ISD Police Department launched an investigation after the child's parents reported the injury. The father stated that his son was acting unusually when he came home from school. When his father asked what was wrong, the child said, “Mrs. Merrell broke her fingers.”

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A medical examination at St. David's North Austin Medical Center confirmed the fractures. School surveillance footage showed interactions between Merrell and the child on the day of the incident, including a close interaction in the hallway at about 10:21 a.m.

“Why did my son suffer all day with two broken fingers?” asked Mr Moore. “He told the staff that this had happened to him and no one helped him.”

According to court documents, Noah informed a nearby teacher about the incident and the pain in his fingers. That unnamed teacher did not report the incident or take him to the nurse.

Noah's parents were not notified either.

CBS Austin asked the Moores: “Were you able to ask the administration, 'Why didn't anyone call us?'”

They replied: “Of course! We sat there and got no answers!”

The Moores said they developed a relationship with Merrell at the beginning of the school year – exchanging emails and stressing that they were always “just a phone call away” in case of an emergency.

However, they said Merrell never informed them about the incident.

“We [entrusted] “We entrusted our son to a system and it failed him,” Moore said. “It made me feel bad as a father, like I hadn't protected my five-year-old son.”

CBS Austin showed the Moores the affidavit for Merrell's arrest. It was the first time they had learned details about the day their son was injured by his teacher.

“I abandoned my baby and spent all these years taking protective measures to keep her from being in this situation, and then it happened,” Moore said.

According to Pflugerville ISD, the teacher is no longer employed by the school district. Principal Genia Antoine sent a letter to families that said, in part:

We recognize the seriousness of these situations and the safety of our students is always our top priority.

Please be assured that we will always contact you promptly if there is a situation that directly affects your student. The safety and wellbeing of our students remains our top priority and we will continue to take every possible measure to ensure a safe learning environment.