Case delayed against Robert Smalls teacher charged with assault

The Robert Smalls International Academy teacher charged with assault and battery after allegedly slapping and pushing a student in September had his case postponed Wednesday to an unspecified date, according to court records.

Arthur Elliot was expected to in magistrate court on Wednesday morning, but his case was continued, Beaufort County Court records show. A new appearance in Beaufort Magistrate Court has not been scheduled yet, court clerk Stephanie Garst said.

Elliot, an eighth grade social studies teacher at the school, was charged with third degree assault and battery Nov. 23 after he allegedly slapped a student on the head and pushed him Sept. 16 at the school, according to a Beaufort County Sheriff's Office report.

The victim, a male student, said Elliot, 51, hit him with an open right hand on the left side of the face in the school's copy room, the report said. Elliot then used both hands to push the student into the copy machine and cursed at him, the report said. The student's father filed a report with the Sheriff's Office on the day of the incident.

Elliot was arrested Nov. 23 and released from the Beaufort County Detention Center Nov. 24.

He was placed on administrative leave from Sept. 17 to Oct. 7, a Beaufort County School District spokesman confirmed last month.

Follow reporter Matt McNab on Twitter at twitter.com/IPBG_Matt.

This story was originally published December 9, 2015 at 7:36 AM with the headline "Case delayed against Robert Smalls teacher charged with assault."