‘I wouldn’t like someone touching my daughter like that’; Socorro High parents react to video of teacher seemingly spanking teen girl

SOCORRO, Texas -- Socorro High School parents had mixed reactions Wednesday to a viral video of an alleged inappropriate act involving a male teacher and a female student.

The video, first aired by ABC-7 on Tuesday night, shows a female student running up to a female friend, with a teacher, wearing a striped polo shirt in the background. What comes next is a loud smacking noise, and the female student grabs her buttocks as though she had just been spanked.

That teacher is on administrative leave pending a Socorro Independent School District investigation.

“I don’t think it’s right. I wouldn’t like someone touching my daughter like that. I don’t know if they were playing because they’re laughing,  but even that I don’t want my child involved in something like that,” said Lorena Marquez, a parent and Socorro High alumnus.

“To me I think it’s sexual harassment on the girl. If I was the father, that wouldn’t ’t be right,” explained Jesse Gonzales who is the father of a Socorro High student.

“That's definitely harassing. She’s probably underage, and he should probably go to jail,” reacted parent Rosa Ruelas.

But not everyone agrees that the video shows the teacher acting inappropriately.

“I really don’t think its a smack on the butt. I think it sounds more like a book or like a magazine on the desk," said Nelly Nevarez, who also has a daughter attending Socorro High.

A spokesman for SISD, Daniel Escobar, tells ABC-7 that parents were notified by an automated phone message on Nov. 13 that an incident had occurred and district officials were looking into the matter.