A group of seventh-graders at Jonesville Middle School in western Virginia rushed a classmate who had just stabbed their teacher Thursday morning, tackling and pinning the boy until deputies arrived, Lee County Sheriff Gary Parsons said.
The teacher was stabbed by a 12-year-old student using a knife taken from the school kitchen, Parsons said. The teacher sustained non-life-threatening injuries and required stitches.
"They tackled the kid, got him down and controlled him," Parsons said of the students who intervened. "They're certainly to be commended and probably saved lives, certainly saved the teacher's life."
The 12-year-old was taken into custody and faces charges of aggravated malicious wounding and assault and battery, Parsons said. All other students and staff at the school were unharmed.
The boy told investigators he took the knife from the school's kitchen before bringing it into the classroom, Parsons said. The Lee County Sheriff's Office is working with the Lee County Commonwealth's Attorney to determine the full scope of charges the juvenile suspect will face.
Jonesville Middle School serves students in Lee County, a rural community in Virginia's far southwestern corner near the Kentucky and Tennessee state lines. The school district did not respond to a request for comment.
