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Mother Of Student Pushed Down School Stairs 'Enraged' At Security Guard

Student Pushed Down Stairs
Lauren Goodlow, after she was allegedly pushed by a CPS security guard. (Goodlow family)

(CBS) – The mother of a Dunbar High School student who was pushed down stairs by an adult employee is speaking out about the alleged assault.

New video surfaced Friday that appears to show sophomore Lauren Goodlow being pushed by a male security guard.

A photo released today by her mother and attorney shows bruises and scratches on her face.

"I'm enraged," the mother, Pershuan Goodlow, tells CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker. "I broke down crying because I couldn't believe that a staff member at a school would treat a child like that."

At one point in the video, Lauren gets up off the ground and the security guard appears to knock her down again. Some students say the guard was just trying to break up a fight. But the girl's attorney, Mark Sutter, says that's not true.

"There was a verbal altercation that the officer stepped in on," he said at a Friday news conference. "There was no threat of violence at that time. This was absolutely not self-defense. This was unequivocal, egregious conduct."

Matt Brandon, the secretary-treasurer for the union that represents Chicago Public Schools security guards, cautioned against making judgments against the employee in the video.

"You don't defend it if that's actually what happened," he says. "The video on the cell phone appears to be damning, but things aren't always what you see with your first initial sight."

Brandon says the union will ask to see the school's security cameras.

Chicago police are investigating the incident.

CBS 2 has been told CPS chief Barbara Byrd-Bennett was "outraged" when she saw the video. Her administration has removed the guard from the school while the case is under investigation.

Pershuan Goodlow declined to discuss the extent of her daughter's injuries.

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