Issues surrounding a physical altercation between an Ortiz Middle School music teacher and a 13-year-old student could wind up in court.

The student's mother said Tuesday that she plans to sue over allegations that the teacher physically attacked her son during a Jan. 25 incident that the boy says started when he didn't stop talking in choir class.

The teacher resigned after the school district placed him on administrative leave, an action he described in his resignation letter as condoning "poor student behavior." The teacher stated in the letter that he had defended himself after he was physically assaulted.

Isabel Enriquez, the student's mother, claims the school didn't do enough to inform her about a situation that allegedly escalated into the teacher walking out of the music room with her son Cristian Isaac Enriquez in a headlock.

"They called me the same day, but their message said, 'There's been an incident with your son and a teacher,' " Enriquez said. "The message did not say that the teacher had hit my son. They should have told me."

Enriquez said she learned details when she questioned her son regarding the message.

Choir director and piano teacher George Darryl Waller had been immediately placed on administrative leave, but on Jan. 30 he sent a resignation letter effective Feb. 29. In the letter, Waller stated various reasons for his resignation, including the school's response to this particular incident.

"As a result of defending myself after a student verbally and physically assaulted me on Wednesday, January 25, 2012, I was quickly placed on administrative leave -- hardly any questions asked," Waller stated in his letter addressed to the school district. "The student and his fellow perpetrators have been allowed to remain in school with nothing less than what appears to be a verbal warning."

Waller also quoted other reasons for his resignation, including what he described as a salary breach. When reached by phone Tuesday, Waller declined to speak. "I don't feel comfortable talking about it, thank you," Waller told a reporter.

Santa Fe Public Schools Superintendent Bobbie Gutierrez said because of student and employee privacy issues, she couldn't comment on the matter. She provided a copy of the resignation letter after it was posted on The Santa Fe Reporter website, but she declined to release documents related to the school district's investigation of the matter.

"Those are confidential documents right now," Gutierrez said. "I can't release anything with potential for litigation."

The 13-year-old said before his mother quizzed him about the incident, "I was a little scared to tell her."

He also said school administrators had warned him of possible suspension for misbehavior on two previous occasions: Once for turning off a class timer and a second time for eating a piece of candy his friend took from a teacher's desk.

The 13-year-old gave the following account of the Jan. 25 incident, which he said started because he was talking during choir class, even after the teacher had asked him to stop:

When class was dismissed, Waller asked Cristian to stay because he was getting a disciplinary report. Waller asked Cristian to sit. Cristian refused. "He told me, 'Sit your ass down.' I told him I didn't want to," the boy said.

According to Cristian's account, Waller grabbed him by his shirt and shoved him into a chair, although Cristian still refused to sit. When Waller walked out of the room with the boy in a headlock, Cristian asked for help, he said. "I saw some friends and I asked three of my friends to help me," said Cristian, who claims one boy pried Waller's hands away, which allowed Cristian to run to the principal's office.

Waller said in his resignation letter: "Please be it known that in addition to my emotional scars, I have sustained bruising to my upper arms as a result of the physical assault. I sent pictures of the bruising to human resources."

Waller, originally from Newport News, Va., had been the middle school's full-time music teacher since September 2010.

Waller's choir class had 50 students, of which a handful were absent the day of the incident.

The superintendent said it's protocol to place a teacher on administrative leave while an investigation is conducted.

"When there is an altercation between a student and a teacher, the first thing we do is send our [human resources] staff to investigate," Gutierrez said. This incident is still under investigation, she said.

School board Vice President Glenn Wikle said in an email Tuesday, "I have seen a letter from Mr. Waller. I'm concerned that the district would be losing such a capable teacher." He said he planned to bring up a general discussion of discipline issues during a school board meeting late Tuesday.

Ortiz Vice Principal Steven Baca said he can't make any specific comments regarding the physical confrontation between Waller and Cristian, but he claims the school tries to inform parents immediately when a child is involved in any incident and that school officials try to involve parents in the investigation process.

Baca said he and the school's principal, Denine Mares, "are very experienced administrators and we follow the protocol to the letter."

Contact Sandra Baltazar Martínez at 986-3062 or smartinez@sfnewmexican.com.