WOODVILLE – An incident that occurred in late May at Woodville ISD, resulting in injuries to several students, has not resulted in any criminal charges.
On May 19, a pre-athletics class at Woodville Middle School was allegedly given a choice during training exercises of a bear crawl exercise on the track or a regular workout. According to Woodville Chief of Police Mike McCulley, about 15 students were involved, with at least one of them suffering first-degree burns.
Woodville PD investigated the incident and turned it over to Tyler County District Attorney Lucas Babin to assess whether or not criminal charges would be filed.
Babin assigned an investigator to the case and said that after gathering information and witness statements through the course of several weeks, there is “insufficient evidence to prove criminal intent beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Allegedly, the coach who taught the pre-athletics class, got the idea for the bear crawl exercise from a challenge inspired by a TikTok video. That coach is no longer employed at WISD.
One parent who spoke to the Booster after the incident, said the challenge allegedly consisted of a 100-yard bear crawl on the hot track surface, but if students fell, or if their knees touched the ground, they would have to start the exercise over.
The incident drew concern from many in the community, and WISD launched a full internal review, in cooperation with law enforcement, after parents voiced complaints and photos of students’ burned hands began surfacing on social media.
An investigation by the Department of Family and Protective Services was also launched.
