CCSD elementary school teacher arrested on child abuse, battery charges

LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A Clark County School District elementary school teacher faces child abuse and battery charges following an investigation that began last month, according to school police.

The Clark County School District Police Department arrested 54-year-old Dina Fanella on Tuesday, Sept. 1. She was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on charges of child abuse/neglect and battery.

Investigators said the case originated in August at Rex Bell Elementary School, located near Valley View and Desert Inn roads in Las Vegas. Police initially issued Fanella a citation during the initial inquiry, but the charges were later upgraded, leading to her formal arrest.

According to an arrest report obtained Friday, a witness told police that they saw Fanella hit two non-verbal autistic students. The first incident was on Aug. 27, when Fanella was allegedly seen pushing a student, which caused him to fall and hit his head on a table corner. The injury resulted in a cut that required stitches, police say.

The second incident was the next day, according to the report, where Fanella was accused of striking a student on his hand when he tried to reach for toys.

The witness told police that Fanella threatened them, saying she would lose her job if she was reported. She later told officers that the first student tripped and fell as she attempted to pull her arm away from them. She also denied hitting the second student, insisting she “guided” his hands, according to the report.

District officials confirmed Fanella has worked for CCSD since March 2006, most recently assigned as a teacher at Bell Elementary. Under the district’s negotiated agreement with the employee bargaining unit, Fanella will be placed on paid administrative leave pending further proceedings.

A mugshot of Fanella was not made available. Authorities noted that the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department informed district police that a recent U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling bars LVMPD from releasing booking photos to the public.