Latest student arrested at Sandalwood charged with hate crime

News4Jax:

According to the arrest report, Jean Belizaire, 18, struck a 17-year-old girl in the back of the head with a rolled up package of papers with such force that she became dizzy and nauseous.

When questioned by police, Belizaire, who is black, admitted striking the girl because she was white.

Belizaire is charged with battery. While that charge is normally a misdemeanor, when the hate crime notation is added it becomes a felony.

He is being held in jail with bond set at $1,000.

Police said at least 28 Sandalwood students have been arrested school began on Aug. 8. The school was on lockdown most of last week and the school remains under a heightened state of security.

Sandalwood Principal Victoria Schultz told Channel 4 last week that she was in the process of hiring two more security guards and police vowed to arrest any student who starts a fight.

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