Substitute teacher sentenced for hitting students

TIFFIN — A substitute teacher was found guilty on two counts of assault last week following the assault of two students at New Riegel Local School District in late March. Eugene M. Chintala, 64, of Carey pleaded no contest to the charges and was sentenced to 180 days in jail and two years of probation with special conditions after being found guilty in Tiffin-Fostoria Municipal Court April 30. Chintala was arrested March 25 following the assault in a fourth-grade classroom he was substituting for at New Riegel. Chintala was ordered to report to jail on May 7, before being released on May 12. His jail sentence was for 180 days, but 177 of those were suspended. Sheriff's report According to a Seneca County Sheriff's Report, the incident took place during 7th period. Chintala was filling in for a fourth-grade art class when the assault occurred, which was reported by the parent of one of the juveniles, the report said. Deputy Matthew Childers, who received the initial report at about 4:30 p.m. the day of the incident, noted observing a red marking on one of the victims' upper right arms. The parent noted photos were taken of the mark following the incident on the victim's upper right shoulder. "(The victim) stated that Eugene hit three times in a downward motion with a fist," Childers wrote.The second victim was also interviewed and said that after Chintala hit the first victim, he yelled "shut up" at the class before striking the second victim, the report indicated. An additional supplemental report revealed a high-schooler who witnessed the incident noted Chintala was upset with students for not cleaning up and "slamming art supplies." Fact-finding report The incident was also reported to the school administration at the end of the March 25 school day, and an internal fact-finding investigation was conducted by the district. Elementary principal Jamie Barrows noted said she had spoken with the parents of one of the victims following the incident, as well as four additional students who were present in the classroom, three of which said they witnessed the incident. "Some of the students used the word hit or slap, while another used the word punch, to describe Chintala hitting (the victim)'s shoulder," Barrows said. Additionally, Barrows had noted seeing a red mark on one of the victims. Following her discussion with the victims and other witnesses, Barrows contacted Chintala, who told her "the students were not very well behaved and very loud." According to Barrows' report, Chintala specifically mentioned the two victims as examples of misbehaving students. Superintendent David Rombach later told Chintala his substitute teaching duties would be put on hold for the rest of that week. During their conversation, Chintala admitted to Rombach that he tapped a student on the shoulder to get their attention, according to the report. Chintala interview Deputies interviewed Chintala the day after the incident, and Chintala admitted to yelling at the class and saying "shut up". During the interview, Chintala noticed that per Seneca County Sheriff's Office policies, the deputies' body-worn cameras were active, jokingly asking Childers if "he looked good on camera." A question was asked as to why a student would report seeing something other than Chintala tapping a student's shoulder, if that was all he had done. "He was mad I was making him work," Chintala told deputies. No reports were filed against Chintala at any of his prior places of employment, the reports said.