A New York school teacher with no formal medical qualification has been arrested for allegedly giving a Covid vaccine to a student, say officials.
Police say Laura Russo administered the dose at her home despite having no legal authorisation to give jabs, or consent from the boy’s parents.
Ms Russo, 54, who teaches biology, was held on New Year’s Eve and could face four years in prison if convicted.
The 17-year-old boy had reportedly wanted the vaccine.
Injections can be dangerous if administered incorrectly. Doctors and licenced medical workers have to verify that a vaccine is not counterfeit or expired.
Patients should also be asked about their medical history and have their reaction monitored after a jab.
Police say it is unclear how Ms Russo obtained the alleged Covid vaccine, or what brand it is. Currently, the Pfizer-BioNTech jab is the only one authorised for Americans under 18 years old.
Video of the incident in Long Island appears to show Ms Russo telling the teenager: “You’ll be fine, I hope.”
“Here you go. At-home vaccine,” he says.
Officials say the boy’s parents called Nassau police after he came home and told them what had happened.
“She had obtained a vaccine,” said Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder. “That’s still under investigation on how she got it.”
The superintendent of Herricks High School, where Ms Russo has been working, said in a statement that the teacher “is a district employee who has been removed from the classroom and reassigned pending the outcome of the investigation”, reports CBS News, the BBC’s partner in the US.
Ms Russo is charged with unauthorised practice of a profession.
A court hearing has been scheduled for 21 January.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
