Columbia, SC (WLTX) - Niya Kenny, 18, is speaking out after she was taken into custody in her Spring Valley High School math class. She says she was standing up for her classmate who was being arrested by Student Resource Officer Ben Fields.
UPDATE:Deputy Involved in the Incident Fired; Read More Here
"I was crying, screaming and crying like a baby," says Kenny. "I was in disbelief."
Related Coverage:Video Surfaces of Incident at Spring Valley High School
"I know this girl don't got nobody and I couldn't believe this was happening," Kenny explained. "I had never seen nothing like that in my life, a man use that much force on a little girl. A big man, like 300 pounds of full muscle. I was like 'no way, no way.' You can't do nothing like that to a little girl. I'm talking about she's like 5'6"."
Kenny says her classmate was not participating and was asked to leave the room by her teacher. When she refused an administrator was called in and asked her to leave. She refused and Officer Fields was called in, asking her the same thing.
Kenny filmed a part of the altercation on her phone. The six second video shows Officer Fields arresting the student.
"I was screaming 'What the f, what the f is this really happening?' I was praying out loud for the girl," says Kenny. "I just couldn't believe this was happening I was just crying and he said, since you have so much to say you are coming too. I just put my hands behind my back."
Her mother Doris Kenny was shocked and upset when she saw the video.
"My child, and I'm not mad at her, she was brave enough to speak out against what was going on and didn't back down and it resulted in her being arrested," says Doris Kenny.
Her daughter was charged with disturbing schools.
"But looking at the video, who was really disturbing schools? Was it my daughter or the officer who came in to the classroom and did that to the young girl?"
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