A Northside Independent School District instructional assistant was taken into custody and charged with felony child abuse, accused of assaulting a non-verbal autistic student, officials confirmed. The assistant, identified as 20-year-old Jacob Hallam, was implicated through security footage exhibiting him in acts of violence against a 13-year-old student. The investigation was prompted by the student's parents raising concerns with school administrators.
Details of the accusations have emerged from arrest documents and a surveillance video. In a video captured by the school, Hallam can be seen grabbing and violently shaking the head of the student. He is further accused of slapping and striking the student with enough force to slam her head against a table. These graphic details were confirmed by a KENS 5 report. Charges against Hallam include a felony for injury to a child - a disabled individual.
The abuse was not isolated to a single episode. According to an arrest affidavit, Hallam is also seen on video forcing a student to eat her lunch by grabbing her face, making her to swallow her food, among other aggressive behaviors. He reportedly shook the student's head, threw her into a wall, and throat-punched her. NISD spokesperson Barry Perez disclosed to News 4 San Antonio that Hallam had been on staff since August 2023, but resigned on March 6, amidst the unfolding of the investigation.
Now awaiting the next steps in the legal process, Hallam is being held in Bexar County jail with bond totals set at $60,000. Each article detailed the allegations with respective bond settings, $60,000 as per KENS 5 and $15,000 according to News 4 San Antonio's report. The discrepancy in bonds reported raises questions yet to be clarified by authorities.
