Clarksville, TN – A 43-year-old Tennessee man working at a behavioral school for children has been charged with child abuse or endangerment after allegedly grabbing a 10-year-old boy by the ankles and slinging him across a room during a dispute over a blanket. The shocking incident took place at Oak Plains Academy, a residential behavioral treatment facility, in May 2025.
The Incident: Blanket Argument Turns Violent
According to Clarksville Now and a police report, the incident occurred on May 28, 2025, when William Sturgill, a staff member at Oak Plains Academy, confronted a 10-year-old boy over a disagreement involving a blanket.
The child’s mother, Katelyn Swainson, told reporters that instead of trying to calm her son, Sturgill “chose to escalate the situation.”
“Mr. Sturgill, instead of walking up to my child and de-escalating him like he’s trained to do, walked up to him and was screaming and pointing in his face,” Swainson said. “My son ran from him, like fight or flight.”…