Five students face charges
after taping teacher to chair

5/20/2004

by Mark Vasto
Landmark reporter

Five seniors at Park Hill High School have been charged with assaulting a teacher during the last week of school. The five boys allegedly tried to tape a male teacher to a chair just days before the students were scheduled to graduate.

Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd said, “When students flaunt authority to the point that a police officer must get involved, the matter ceases to become a simple school discipline matter and becomes an issue that the entire community must confront. Teachers and children alike deserve safe schools where students can learn free from this sort of flagrant and potentially dangerous defiance.”

Those charged are: Joseph L. Blankenship, 18, of Kansas City; Dexter Briscoe, 18, of Kansas City; Trevor Hachman, 18, of Weatherby Lake; Daniel M. Ikona, 19, of Kansas City; Matthew T. Mayfield, 18, of Kansas City. Each is charged with third degree assault.

According to court records, on May 11, the five Park Hill High School students restrained a teacher and attempted to use packaging tape to tape him to a chair. Blankenship allegedly had the tape in his backpack. Mayfield allegedly said he wanted to “mess with” the teacher.

Court documents allege Ikona covered the teacher’s eyes during the incident. The other students allegedly attempted to restrain the teacher so Blankenship could tape him to the chair. The teacher ultimately broke free before the students could tape him to the chair. He was not injured.

The students allegedly laughed about the event after it occurred.

The incident occurred early in the school day and was reported to the Platte County Sheriff’s Department Deputy who serves as the School Resource Officer at the high school. The deputy arrested the teens, and they were taken to the Platte County Jail. They were later released, pending further investigation and charges.

Zahnd said, “Fortunately, neither the teacher nor the students were hurt in this incident, but this was more than just a senior prank gone bad. The fact that the students continued joking about the event, even after they were handcuffed and being led to jail, shows a distressing lack of respect for school and police authorities.”

Each student faces a maximum sentence of 15 days in jail or a fine of up to $300.

The charges against the students are merely accusations, and they are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.