On November 29, a middle school art teacher was arrested after he fainted during class time due to overdosing on fentanyl.
Things were normal at Roosevelt Intermediate School in Westfield until a staff member found a teacher unconscious inside a classroom. This teacher was 57-year-old Frank Thompson, who taught visual art to grades 6th and 7th and arts and crafts to grade 8th.
According to the police, the art teacher was found “unconscious and unresponsive”. Authorities in the school rushed to the classroom to diagnose what had happened to the teacher. The medical authorities there gave Thompson naloxone hydrochloride, which is also known as Narcan, an opioid overdose treatment.
After taking the medication, Thompson showed signs of improvement. The investigation began after this incident and authorities found “a quantity of a suspected controlled substance” and “various items of drug paraphernalia” from Thompson’s closet in the school.
Thompson is now charged with third-degree crimes of owning a dangerous substance and risking the welfare of children. He is also charged with a disorderly person offense and is scheduled to appear in court on February 1.
Responses to the teacher overdose incident
The school has not commented on this incident yet. We also do not know if Thompson’s employment contract with the school still stands. Superintendent Raymond González said in a statement, “While the Westfield Public School District cannot comment on personnel matters which are confidential, we will maintain a continued focus on student and staff safety and on preserving the integrity of the classroom learning environment.”
He further added, “We are grateful for our strong partnership with the Westfield Police Department.”
People are severely distressed over this news, which makes sense. Overdosing in front of students and keeping drugs inside a school is a heinous and serious crime that risks the security of a lot of students.
Many people are urging for the man to be put behind bars for a long time.
