Latest news with #teachingassistant
Malay Mail
3 days ago
- Malay Mail
France mourns as teen charged with killing teaching assistant, minute of silence observed nationwide
LILLE, June 13 — A 14-year-old schoolboy was charged with the murder of a teaching assistant stabbed to death earlier this week, prosecutors said yesterday, as schools across France held a minute of silence. The secondary school pupil was arrested Tuesday after allegedly stabbing to death a school monitor—a 31-year-old mother of a young boy—during a bag search in the eastern town of Nogent. Quentin G. was charged with the 'murder of a person in a position of authority', which under French law is an aggravating circumstance, and was ordered to be held in custody. He has also been named as a person of interest in the assault of a gendarme during his arrest shortly after the fatal stabbing, said prosecutors in the eastern city of Dijon. This latest school attack has caused widespread shock in France, with President Emmanuel Macron denouncing what he said was a rise in violence. Prosecutors say the pupil had wanted to attack 'any' monitor after being reprimanded a few days earlier for kissing his girlfriend. Regional prosecutor Denis Devallois told reporters on Wednesday that the teenager acknowledged 'being the perpetrator' of the deadly stabbing and that he 'intended to kill'. As a minor, the suspect faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison instead of life imprisonment. A minute's silence Schools across France observed a minute of silence at midday in memory of the victim, identified by authorities only as Melanie. France has seen several attacks on teachers and pupils in recent years by schoolchildren. Macron denounced the violence during a cabinet meeting on Thursday, said the government spokeswoman. 'He spoke of a rise, a disinhibition around violence in our country, for which solutions will clearly need to be found,' Sophie Primas said, quoting the French leader. In March, police began carrying out random searches for concealed weapons in and around schools. Classes resumed on Thursday at the site of the killing, the Francoise Dolto school. The first students arrived shortly after 8:00 am in complete silence, escorted by a member of school staff, an AFP journalist saw. 'It's going to be strange not seeing the monitor anymore,' said Jade, 15. 'I told my daughters to go to the counselling room to talk,' said Daniele Quentin, 52, mother of three children enrolled at the school. 'It's going to be hard for the girls, who really liked her,' she said, referring to the victim. 'No regret' A former hairdresser, the victim had retrained and worked at the school since September. She was a mother of a four-year-old boy and a councillor in a village near Nogent. Her family called for a silent march to be held in Nogent today. The suspect told investigators 'there was perhaps a link with the fact he was told off by a monitor on Friday, June 6, as he was kissing his girlfriend on school grounds', Devallois said, adding she was not the one killed. 'He stated that he had, as early as the next day, Saturday, mulled over a plan to kill a monitor,' the prosecutor added. 'He grabbed the largest knife in his home to, in his words, 'cause the most damage'.' The teenager did not appear to suffer from any 'mental disorder', but appeared 'detached' and expressed 'no regret' for the killing, Devallois said. In the wake of the attack, authorities promised measures to tackle knife crime among children. Macron said on Tuesday he was proposing banning social media for children under 15. Greece has spearheaded a proposal backed by France and Spain for the European Union to limit children's use of online platforms. Macron said France would go ahead with a unilateral ban if no progress was made on an EU-wide measure. — AFP
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Boy, 14, 'who knifed French teaching assistant to death had been told off for kissing his girlfriend and could 'no longer tolerate' female staff', cops reveal
The 14-year-old student who knifed a teaching assistant to death during a bag search at a school in France had just been reprimanded for kissing his girlfriend and specifically sought out a female supervisor for the attack, prosecutors claimed. Mélanie G., a 31-year-old mother-of-one, was stabbed several times by the unnamed teenager outside the Françoise Dolto secondary school in Nogent, northeast France, on Tuesday. She was rushed into critical care in 'absolute emergency' but succumbed to her injuries within two hours. Mélanie was the mother of a four-year-old child and lived in nearby Sarcey, where she also worked as a municipal councillor, Le Dauphine reports. She had celebrated her 31st birthday only a few days prior to the fatal attack and was described 'by all witnesses as a particularly well-liked person,' according to the prosecutor in nearby Chaumont, Denis Devallois. Speaking to Le Parisien during a press conference this afternoon, Devallois shared more information about the circumstances surrounding the killing after speaking with investigators. The student 'had a determined plan to kill a female supervisor,' the prosecutor said, adding that the boy had expressed a 'fascination with violence and death,' as well as with the 'darker characters' of television series. Devallois said the teenager appeared detached and expressed no feelings of remorse or compassion in his interview with police, nor did he exhibit any signs of a possible mental disorder. The student reportedly told police he attacked shortly after he was told off for sharing a kiss with his girlfriend at the school and 'could no longer tolerate the behaviour of female supervisors in general'. He said he had not specifically targeted Mélanie, but was committed to attacking a female member of staff and doing the 'most damage possible', according to Devallois. French gendarmes control the access to a secondary school after a 31-year-old teaching assistant was stabbed to death by a 14-year-old pupil Mélanie had only been working at the school since the start of the school year, having recently retrained as a teaching assistant to have more time to take care of her child. She was 'simply doing her job by welcoming students at the entrance to the school', said Elisabeth Allain-Moreno, secretary general of the SE-UNSA teachers' union, after the attack. A neighbour described Mélanie as a 'devoted' person, a 'very kind woman' and 'a good mother'. The offending pupil was arrested and taken into custody immediately following the horrific attack on Tuesday. France's Education Minister Elisabeth Borne told reporters that the boy had been a student representative in the school's anti-bullying program, and had twice been suspended for disrupting class. French President Emmanuel Macron denounced what he called a 'senseless wave of violence', adding: 'We all stand with her family, her loved ones, her colleagues and the entire educational community.' 'The nation is in mourning and the government is mobilised to reduce crime,' he said in statements Tuesday evening. Meanwhile, French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said the government plans to increase security measures at schools in an attempt to crack down on students carrying deadly weapons into the classroom. 'The government intends to move towards experimenting with security gates at the entrance to schools,' Bayrou said, adding that he wanted to ban certain blades, as currently 'a certain number of these knives are not considered weapons.' Macron also said he would push for European Union regulation to ban social media for children under the age of 15 after the attack. He said he hoped to see results within the next few months. 'If that does not work, we will start to do it in France. We cannot wait,' he told the France 2 public broadcaster. 'Platforms have the ability to verify age. Let's do it,' he added. Backed by France and Spain, Greece has spearheaded a proposal for how the EU should limit children's use of online platforms as evidence shows that social media can have negative effects on children's mental and physical health. Aurore, a close friend of the victim, told BFMTV yesterday afternoon that Mélanie had only recently been promoted a supervisor role. 'She was very happy to have this profession, she wanted to help young people. She really liked the work atmosphere,' she told the outlet. French daily JHM reported that the attack occurred shortly before 8.30am at the entrance to the school during a bag search for knives and concealed weapons. A gendarme detaining the student suffered a slight hand injury during the arrest, the gendarmerie said. The motive for the attack still remains unclear. France has witnessed a spate of deadly knife attacks in schools in recent months. In April, a teenage girl was killed and three students injured in a stabbing attack at a private school in western France. Law enforcement officers were instructed to carry out bag checks at schools across the country from March in a bid to quell the violence. By April, the education ministry reported that some 958 bag checks in schools had resulted in the seizure of 94 knives - nearly one in every ten bags searched. Allain-Moreno said that the attack 'shows that nothing can ever be completely secure and that it is prevention that needs to be focused on.' A large emergency response force was quickly scrambled and support offered to students and teachers in the wake of the attack. Some 324 students were placed in lockdown. Classes on Tuesday and Wednesday were called off and students told to return home in small groups. French far-right leader Marine Le Pen denounced what she called the 'normalisation of extreme violence, encouraged by the apathy of the authorities.' 'Not a week goes by without a tragedy striking a school,' Le Pen said on X. 'The French people have had enough and are waiting for a firm, uncompromising and determined political response to the scourge of juvenile violence.' French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said the government plans to increase security measures at schools in an attempt to crack down on students carrying deadly weapons into the classroom Education Minister Borne, who introduced the bag searches, said she would go to Nogent 'to support the entire school community and the police'. It was the first year such bag checks had been coordinated at the school as part of a national push. The rectorate said that there had been 'no particular difficulties' at the school until now. The bag checks had been organised well in advance, in conjunction with the gendarmerie, it added. Jean-Remi Girard, president of the National Union of Secondary Schools, said: 'It's impossible to be more vigilant 24 hours a day. 'We can't say that every student is a danger or a threat, otherwise we'd never get out of bed in the morning.' Ms Borne announced in February that bag searches would be implemented across the country this year, citing concerns about 'a much more widespread use of bladed weapons' among young people. The searches, she said, would be carried out by law enforcement officers and not teachers or assistants, 'since this does not fall within the remit of education personnel', the minister said at the time. Police started carrying out random searches for knives and concealed weapons at schools in March. The attack and bag searches follow a series of violent attacks in French schools. In February, a 17-year-old high school student was seriously injured with a knife in the quad of his school in Bagneux. Then in April, a teenage girl was killed and three students injured in a stabbing attack at a private school in western France. The attacker was restrained at the scene after being restrained by a teacher at the Notre-Dame-de-Toutes-Aides school in Nantes. After that attack, Prime Minister Francois Bayrou called for 'more intensive checks around and inside schools'.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Pictured: Teaching assistant mother-of-one stabbed to death by pupil during bag search at French school just days after she turned 31
The female teaching assistant stabbed to death by one of her students during a bag search at a school in France has been pictured. Mélanie G., a 31-year-old mother-of-one, was attacked several times with a knife outside the Françoise Dolto secondary school in Nogent on Tuesday. She was said to have been taken into care in 'absolute emergency' before succumbing to her injuries within two hours. Mélanie was the mother of a four-year-old child and lived in nearby Sarcey, where she also worked as a municipal councillor, Le Dauphine reports. She had celebrated her 31st birthday only a few days ago. Mélanie had only been working at the school since the start of the school year, having recently retrained as a teaching assistant to have more time to take care of her child. She was 'simply doing her job by welcoming students at the entrance to the school', said Elisabeth Allain-Moreno, secretary general of the SE-UNSA teachers' union, after the attack. A neighbour described Mélanie as a 'devoted' person, a 'very kind woman' and 'a good mother'. The offending pupil, 15, was arrested and taken into custody on Tuesday. The Education Minister told reporters that the boy had been a student representative in the school's anti-bullying program, and had twice been suspended for disrupting class. A gendarme detaining the student suffered a slight hand injury during the arrest, the gendarmerie said. The motive for the attack still remains unclear. French President Emmanuel Macron denounced what he called a 'senseless wave of violence', adding: 'We all stand with her family, her loved ones, her colleagues and the entire educational community.' 'The nation is in mourning and the government is mobilised to reduce crime,' he said on Tuesday. Aurore, a close friend of the victim, told BFMTV yesterday afternoon that Mélanie had only recently been promoted a supervisor role. 'She was very happy to have this profession, she wanted to help young people. She really liked the work atmosphere,' she told the outlet. French daily JHM reported that the attack occurred shortly before 8.30am at the entrance to the school during a bag search for knives and concealed weapons. France has witnessed a spate of deadly knife attacks in schools in recent months. In April, a teenage girl was killed and three students injured in a stabbing attack at a private school in western France. Law enforcement officers were instructed to carry out bag checks at schools across the country from March in a bid to quell the violence. By April, the education ministry reported that some 958 bag checks in schools had resulted in the seizure of 94 knives - nearly one in every ten bags searched. Allain-Moreno said that the attack 'shows that nothing can ever be completely secure and that it is prevention that needs to be focused on.' A large emergency response force was quickly scrambled and support offered to students and teachers in the wake of the attack. Some 324 students were placed in lockdown. Classes on Tuesday and Wednesday were called off and students told to return home in small groups. French far-right leader Marine Le Pen denounced what she called the 'normalisation of extreme violence, encouraged by the apathy of the authorities.' 'Not a week goes by without a tragedy striking a school,' Le Pen said on X. 'The French people have had enough and are waiting for a firm, uncompromising and determined political response to the scourge of juvenile violence.' Education Minister Élisabeth Borne, who introduced the bag searches, said she would go to Nogent 'to support the entire school community and the police'. It was the first year such bag checks had been coordinated at the school as part of a national push. The rectorate said that there had been 'no particular difficulties' at the school until now. The bag checks had been organised well in advance, in conjunction with the gendarmerie, it added. Jean-Remi Girard, president of the National Union of Secondary Schools, said: 'It's impossible to be more vigilant 24 hours a day. 'We can't say that every student is a danger or a threat, otherwise we'd never get out of bed in the morning.' Ms Borne announced in February that bag searches would be implemented across the country this year, citing concerns about 'a much more widespread use of bladed weapons' among young people. The searches, she said, would be carried out by law enforcement officers and not teachers or assistants, 'since this does not fall within the remit of education personnel', the minister said at the time. Police started carrying out random searches for knives and concealed weapons at schools in March. The attack and bag searches follow a series of violent attacks in French schools. In February, a 17-year-old high school student was seriously injured with a knife in the quad of his school in Bagneux. Then in April, a teenage girl was killed and three students injured in a stabbing attack at a private school in western France. The attacker was restrained at the scene after being restrained by a teacher at the Notre-Dame-de-Toutes-Aides school in Nantes.
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- South China Morning Post
France's Macron condemns deadly school stabbing after 14-year-old's knife attack
French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday condemned 'senseless ... violence' after a 14-year-old pupil fatally stabbed a teaching assistant, the latest deadly incident at a school in the country. Advertisement The secondary school student was arrested after attacking the 31-year-old assistant with a knife during a bag search in Nogent in eastern France, officials said. France has in recent years seen several attacks on teachers and pupils by other schoolchildren. In March, police started random searches for knives and other weapons concealed in bags at and around schools. The assistant at the Francoise Dolto school in Nogent was stabbed several times shortly before 8.00am, 'as pupils were arriving for a visual inspection of their bags in the presence of the police', education officials said. Advertisement The suspect was taken into custody.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Daily Mail
Horror as student, 14, stabs female teaching assistant, 31, to death during bag search at French school
A teaching assistant died after being stabbed by a 14-year-old pupil in France this morning, according to a source close to the case. The 31-year-old teaching assistant was attacked and seriously wounded with a knife during a bag search outside of the Françoise Dolto secondary school in Nogent. The offending pupil was arrested and taken into custody after the attack, the local prefecture reported. Education Minister Elisabeth Borne, who introduced bag searches in French schools in February, said she would go to Nogent 'to support the entire school community and the police'. Bag checks have become policy in France this year in the wake of a spate of attacks on teachers and pupils by other schoolchildren. At the end of April, the education ministry reported that some 958 bag checks in schools had resulted in the seizure of 94 knives - nearly one in every ten bag searched. Emmanuel Macron shared his shock at the attack on social media, writing that 'while watching over our children in Nogent, a teaching assistant lost her life'. The French President denounced what he called a 'senseless wave of violence', adding: 'We all stand with her family, her loved ones, her colleagues and the entire educational community.'
