'Hero' Nursery School Teacher Launches Slap Attack on Intruder

Snack time at the Pine Tree Day Nursery in Riverhead turned into terror on Tuesday, when an unknown man hopped the fence into the playground.

But despite her fear, one brave teacher, Barbara Schandel, did what came naturally -- running to protect her young students.

"We were outside playing and there were two gentlemen there," Schandel said. "One was cutting the grass."

The nursery school, she said, is located right next to a cemetery on Roanoke Avenue. At first, the teacher thought the two men were together. But then, she said, something went terribly wrong.

"I saw one gentleman jumping over the fence,"  Schandel said. "I started yelling at the other gentleman, asking 'Why is he here?' The man who was cutting the grass said he didn't know him."

Fueled by adrenaline, Schandel sprang into action. "I was running," she said. "I was yelling at him, telling him I was going to call the cops. He moved this toy truck, pushed it out of the way and grabbed one of my student's hands."

Frantic, Schandel protected the child, a little three-year-old boy. "I slapped him and started screaming at him," she said. "I slapped his hand, to release the child -- then I just grabbed all three children and started running."

The children, she said, were not afraid. "They were more concerned that I was yelling," she said.

Meanwhile, the man kept repeating the words, "I'm not bad; I'm not bad," she said.

While she was running toward safety with the kids, Schandel heard the intruder jump back over the fence; police said he headed back toward Riverhead Cemetery.

"We just brought the kids inside and counted them. We have always been taught to count the kids, and now I know why," Schandel said. "We knew 15 kids had go out, and 15 went in."

Thinking back over the incident, Schandel said she had only one thought in her mind: "I wanted the kids to be safe. I'm with them every day. They're like my  kids."

While she has no idea why the man hopped the fence, Schandel said she was determined to protect her young charges. "In my mind, I thought he was going to take him," she said.

Schandel called the main office, yelled for a lockdown, and police were notified, she said.

Rivehead Town police said they are investigating the criminal trespass incident and looking for the suspicious person. Police said the suspect is described as a black man, about 5'5" to 5'7" tall, with a chunky build and a dark complexion, wearing tan khaki pants and a black shirt with white lettering.

A witness said that when the suspect spoke, he sounded "mentally challenged," police said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Riverhead police at 631-727-4500.

The nursery school, Schandel said, will have a six-foot high stockade fence erected on Thursday, with cameras added to the back of the building. There are already cameras on the front section of the facility.

While she remained strong for the children and parents, Schandel said the incident affected her deeply ."I cried when I got in the car when I was leaving," she said. "I'm still a little shaky. I was face to face with the guy."

Her co-workers are calling Schandel a hero. "I'm just so glad the children are okay and everyone is safe," she said.

Such an incident has never happened at the nursery before, Schandel said. "I asked if there was anything else I could have done. They said there was nothing."