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Woman sentenced in teacher assault case

Incident took place in 2015

A Pittsburgh woman, charged with assaulting a teacher at a school for at-risk and troubled children and young adults, was sentenced to fines in Butler County Court on Tuesday, after entering a guilty plea.

Patience T. Stoddard, 21, was sentenced to court costs and a $100 fine by Judge Timothy McCune, following her guilty plea to summary harassment.

She was initially charged with felony aggravated assault and summary harassment, with misdemeanor disorderly conduct later added.

Stoddard was previously admitted to the county Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition for 12 months on March 16, 2016, which was later revoked in June 2017.

The charges stem from an incident at St. Stephen's Lutheran Academy in Zelienople on March 27, 2015, when the Zelienople police department say she attacked a teacher, punching her in the face.

Police said Stoddard began acting up about 1 p.m. in the hallway outside a classroom for school-aged children and older teens with emotional and behavioral problems.

Two teachers attempted to get her to return to the classroom, and instead, Stoddard called one of them a derogatory name and punched the other in the face.

She also tried to kick other staff members who moved in to restrain her, police said.

Stoddard later admitted to police that she punched the teacher after becoming “frustrated,” documents said.

She was arraigned and released on $2,500 unsecured bail.

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