A Bernalillo Public Schools teacher has been accused of physically and verbally abusing a student in a recently filed lawsuit.
The suit, filed Jan. 27 in U.S. District Court for the state of New Mexico, leveled the allegations against Melanie Jean Martinez, who worked as a fifth grade teacher at Bernalillo Elementary School from 2018 to 2023.
The suit alleges Martinez bullied a student, grabbed her wrist and neck, threw books at her and refused to let her use the restroom, which led to the girl urinating herself in class. After urinating herself at her desk, Martinez allegedly told the girl to “suck it up with a straw.”…