SCORES of children at Corinaldi Primary School in St James were left traumatised on seeing a parent using a baton to beat a security officer at the institution on Monday afternoon .

At press time Monday night the condition of the security officer was unknown, but following the incident he was rushed to Cornwall Regional Hospital where he has been undergoing treatment for the injuries sustained.

The Jamaica Observer was told that about 4:15 pm, after school had been dismissed, a disagreement developed between the security officer and the parent, who apparently had made his way onto the school compound in an attempt to retrieve his child.

However, the security officer, in a bid to prevent the parent from going any further — given the policy of the school that students should be picked up at the gate — tried to escort the parent back to that area, but that did not go down well with the parent.

“This is total disrespect; the security officer was doing his job on the school compound,” a member of the schools PTA said, adding that after the incident the security officer could hardly stand.

The incident has left teachers and other individuals connected to the school upset.