A Smyrna High School teacher was arrested at her Smyrna home Wednesday and charged with three counts of offensive touching stemming from incidents in her classroom with her students, Smyrna police said.

The arrest comes as a separate, monthslong criminal investigation into abuse claims at Smyrna Elementary School continues.

Forty-year-old Kanika Jackson was arrested this week following a four-month Smyrna police investigation in conjunction with the Delaware Department of Justice, sparked by a call to the state’s Division of Family Services hotline alleging Jackson was verbally and physically abusive toward students in her class.

Police said the investigation revealed Jackson “placed her hands on students in a physical manner, causing them offense and alarm” on three separate occasions during the most recent school year, which recently concluded.

“In one instance, she allegedly grabbed a student’s hair and pulled it. In another, she is alleged to have grabbed a student’s neck and shaken them. In the final incident, she is alleged to have grabbed a student by the neck and pushed them into a wall,” police said.

Jackson was arrested around 11:30 am. Wednesday without incident, charged with three counts of offensive touching and released on her own recognizance pending a court hearing.

The Smyrna School District placed Jackson on leave at the start of the investigation in February, according to a district statement released Thursday.

The ongoing Smyrna Elementary School investigation

The separate investigation into abuse at Smyrna Elementary School also began in February and is still active, Smyrna police reported this week.

No additional details were released about the status of the investigation.

At the time, the Smyrna School District released a statement about the case: “A report was made to the Smyrna School District on February 16, 2024, alleging possible professional misconduct in a classroom at Smyrna Elementary School. As part of our multi-faceted approach to keep our students safe, we have taken all precautions, including contacting law enforcement and providing alternative staff to instruct students. The investigation is active and on-going.”

On May 30, the school issued another statement to the school community, which has been awaiting its results.

“The Smyrna School District would like to inform everyone that recently there have been inquiries regarding the Smyrna Elementary investigation from earlier this school year,” it read. “While we are still unable to release any details, we are fully cooperating with the Smyrna Police Department and Department of Justice.

“As always, we remain committed to the care, safety, and well-being of our students, and we, like you, do take these allegations seriously.”

Have a story idea? Contact Ryan Cormier of Delaware Online/The News Journal at rcormier@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2863. Follow him on Facebook (@ryancormier) and X (@ryancormier).

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Smyrna High School teacher Kanika Jackson arrested by Smyrna police