A New Hanover County teaching assistant has been charged with assaulting a 12-year-old student.

Sequana Brown, age 36, was arrested and charged with misdemeanor child abuse and simple assault for pushing a 12-year-old boy to the ground in the school cafeteria of Myrtle Grove Middle School.

Brown was arrested on Sept. 23, nearly a full week after the alleged incident occurred. No image of Brown was available.

According to the warrant, Brown allegedly grabbed the boy and shoved him to the floor. She allegedly shoved the boy to the ground a second time while a school resource officer attempted to intervene.

The warrant says the boy’s head came close to hitting a seat on a table nearby. It was also reported Brown knocked the boy’s hat off his head and words were exchanged.

Just before the incident, the boy had been arguing with a cafeteria worker about food items. The argument escalated and the boy tossed his tray to the ground in anger. Brown entered the scene at that point and at that point the struggle between the boy and Brown started.

The district suspended Brown without pay on Sept. 16, but she resigned on the day of her arrest.  As of Dec. 7, Brown is still listed under the exceptional students staff directory on the Myrtle Grove Middle School website.

There is no record on file with the state of Brown having a teaching license in North Carolina.