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Former Hays CISD substitute given 10-year probated prison sentence for assaulting student

Tiffani Lankford pleaded guilty to aggravated assault charges after she was caught on video attacking a student at Lehman High School in 2019.

AUSTIN, Texas — A former Hays CISD substitute teacher was given a 10-year probated prison sentence on Monday, nearly four years after she was caught on video attacking a student at Lehman High School.

Tiffani Lankford pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated assault by a public servant for the incident, which occurred on Nov. 8, 2019. The victim allegedly suffered a brain injury as a result of the attack.

It was revealed after the attack that Lankford had a history of having altercations with students. Lankford also allegedly targeted a 12-year-old student at McCormick Middle School two months prior to the incident at Lehman.

The 12-year-old’s mother emailed McCormick Middle School principal James Cruz on Sept. 16, 2019 to complain about the incident, which reportedly started with Lankford throwing away the student’s snack.

According to the complaint the student’s mother sent to Cruz, “[The student] is an emotional kid, always has been and I know the doctor said it can be due to ADHD. [The student] started crying in class and the teacher called [the student] a crybaby in front of the whole class.”

The mother went on to write, “What substitute teacher or grown adult thinks it’s okay to call a student/child a crybaby in front of their peers? If this substitute can’t handle this type of situation without calling a student a name to make fun of them, then this person should not be responsible for a group of young kids.”

The mother also wrote, “Sounds like this substitute was bullying my [kid].”

The incidents involving Lankford spurred the district into creating a centralized registry of all complaints against substitutes with the district’s human resources department.

Lankford's sentence will allow her to forego jail time and instead spend 10 years under community supervision. She will also be barred from working in child care or education and must pay a $1,000 fine.

Paul Batrice, the attorney who represented the victim in the case against Lankford, released the following statement on behalf of the victim regarding the sentence.

“The victim and her family is saddened and disappointed that an act of this magnitude wouldn’t be followed by jail time, especially for such a violent attack against a child. Parents should feel safe sending their kids to school. There is some solace in that she will no longer be caring for children. We hope this brings awareness so that this is the last time an attack like this happens in our schools.

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