Palatine teacher acquitted over altercation involving student's earbuds

PALATINE, Ill. (WLS) -- A teacher in northwest suburban Palatine has been acquitted of battery after an argument over earbuds escalated at Winston Campus Junior High School nearly a year ago.

A judge found Sue Ellen Patkunas not guilty of hitting a student in the face with a laptop computer in January.

Police say one of Patkunas' students refused to remove the earbuds in her classroom. She pulled a cord to remove the earbuds before throwing a computer that hit the student in the face.

Patkunas later resigned.