OVERTON, Texas — Overton High School Principal Jeffery D. Hogg who was accused of causing bruising after paddling a student in August had his assault charge dismissed Tuesday.
Arrest documents alleged Hogg used corporal punishment (paddling) on a high school student in August after both the student and her mother agreed to the paddling instead of in-school suspension. The next day, the mother made a report to the Rusk County Sheriff's Office and medical officials claimed the bruising was consistent with child abuse.
Hogg was charged with assault in October and released from the Rusk County Jail soon after.
This week, Rusk County District Attorney's Office asked that the charge be dismissed after a Texas Department of Family and Protective Services investigator found that the alleged abuse did not happen. A motion from the DA's Office said that the statement from a forensic pediatrician saying the bruising was "consistent with abuse" has become popular for scientific testimony.
A justice of the peace then approved the motion and ordered the case be dismissed.
According to the document, another listed reason for dismissal is that Hogg stood in place of a parent and consent was given from the mother for him to administer the paddling.
Overton ISD superintendent Larry Calhoun said in a statement that he agrees with the outcome of the case.
"We are aware that the district attorney has submitted a motion to dismiss all charges against Mr. Hogg. We support the district attorney’s action, and have believed from the beginning that this was the only appropriate result. We don’t feel the need to publicly discuss this particular incident any further. We will continue to focus our efforts on serving our students and community, and on emphasizing the great things that happen every day at Overton ISD," Calhoun said.