The incident took place Jan. 11, but records obtained by Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Richard Belcher show there was no official report until two days later.

In some cases, whether abuse occurred may be a judgment call by a staff member, said Alexa Ross, an Atlanta lawyer who has practiced education law in Georgia for 26 years. But erring on the side of reporting is beneficial, she said.

“You never want to take a chance that … some harm or potential harm goes unnoticed,” she said.

Records show the incident took place on January 11. Many details of the incident and staff members’ actions are unclear: School district officials heavily redacted a district investigative report obtained under state open-record laws.

But district records show football coach Earthwind Moreland was suspended for one day without pay for lacking “professional judgment.” Teacher Carrie Rowe was suspended for five days. Social worker Kara Wright, whom district officials recommended firing, resigned.

None returned messages from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.