A teacher of Cuban origin was arrested in the southwest of Miami-Dade County, accused of grabbing a two-year-old child by the neck and shaking him inside a classroom, according to reports from the local press.
The accused is Beatriz Gómez Hurtado, 53 years old, who worked at the Lincoln-Marti Schools and Childcare Centers located at 15198 SW 288th Street.
The charge brought by the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office is child abuse without causing serious bodily harm.
According to the arrest report, the incident began when the minor had a tantrum and threw himself on the floor.
Gómez Hurtado lifted him by the wrist and then, “placed both hands around the victim's neck and face and shook him back and forth several times”, according to the police report.
After the aggression, the teacher made the child sit in a chair as a disciplinary measure.
The boy had a mark on the right side of his neck and a bruise on his left cheek. Everything was recorded by the surveillance cameras in the room.
The reaction of the school and the parents
An employee at the center noticed the injuries on the minor and alerted the director, who reviewed the video, removed Gómez Hurtado from the classroom immediately, and fired her, notifying the family and the authorities.
In a statement, Lincoln-Martí Community Agency expressed that it is "deeply saddened and concerned," and noted that its surveillance systems "enabled the swift detection of the behavior, allowed for the employee to be removed, informed the family, and notified the relevant authorities."
The reaction from the parents was one of alarm.
A mother confessed to Univision: "The truth is I'm shaking because I never thought about that at any moment." Another father was more direct: "I hope the teacher gets what she deserves."
A witness identified as Nisha Evans stated to WSVN 7 News that the news did not surprise her: "When I was told, I already knew which teacher they were talking about," she claimed; and revealed that she had taken her own children out of the school due to previous concerns with the staff.
Bail and restraining order
This Wednesday, Gómez Hurtado appeared before a judge, who set bail at 5,000 dollars and issued a restraining order regarding the victim and the school premises.
The accused was released from TGK County Jail after posting bail and declined to answer questions from the press. A man accompanying her at the time of leaving the prison simply told the media, "There is nothing to comment on."
A concerning pattern at Lincoln-Martí
This case has a direct precedent within the same network: in December 2024, teacher Merlin Gutiérrez was arrested at another Lincoln-Martí center after being caught on video hitting, shaking, and slapping a two-year-old girl.
Gutiérrez pleaded guilty in February 2025 and received five years of probation along with a permanent ban on working with minors.
In both cases, the victim was two years old, the incident occurred in a classroom at Lincoln-Martí, it was recorded on cameras, and the institution took immediate action by terminating the employee.
Lincoln-Martí Schools, founded in 1968 by the Cuban exile Demetrio Pérez Jr., has more than 46 centers serving approximately 6,500 students in South Florida.
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