Pupils demand return of teacher fired after student stole her nude photo

Students are demanding the reinstatement of a teacher who was fired after a boy stole a nude picture of her from her phone. Thousands have signed a petition calling for Leigh Anne Arthur to be given her job back at Union County High School in South Carolina. They say it is unfair that the 33-year-old was made to resign last month, days after a student copied a naked photo of her from her device and shared it through text messages and social media. No disciplinary action has been taken against the student.

Leigh Anne Arthur is the victim of a blatant attack of her privacy

Petition calls for her reinstatement

Ms Arthur, an engineering teacher, said she left her mobile phone on her desk on 18 February as she monitored a hallway. A 16-year-old boy took the handset, she said, and used his own phone to take pictures of the nude image of Ms Arthur on her device. The teacher, who claims the photo was a Valentine’s Day treat for her husband, said at the end of the class the student warned her: “Your day of reckoning is coming." But David Eubanks, interim superintendent of Union County schools, said she should not have left her phone unlocked.

We all make stupid decisions when we’re 16. He had the ultimate decision to take pictures of my pictures and he had the ultimate decision to send them out.

Leigh Anne Arthur

leigh anne arthur