The Knucklehead Of The Day: Ms. Crank Call

Today's Knucklehead has got to be the Shreveport, Louisiana middle school teacher who, while in the presence of students, allegedly left a threatening voice mail message on a youngster's cell phone:

A Caddo Parish middle school teacher has been arrested on charges she threatened a teenager who had been dating one of her students.

Police said the threatening call was made during the teacher's class in front of other students.

Vicki Garland, a teacher at Ridgewood Middle School, was arrested this afternoon by Shreveport police. Garland, 51, of Benton, went to police headquarters with her lawyer and was booked on misdemeanor charges of making a harassing phone call.

The alleged victim, 16-year-old Bryan Litton, said a threatening message was left on his cell phone earlier this month. The call regarded the boy's ex-girlfriend, police said.

"Hey, Ryan, I want you to leave, I want you leave Julia alone," the caller said. "I want you to stop calling her, because if you don't I'm going to come to your house and I'm going to break every bone in your body, put you in a box and ship you to the president of the United States. You hear me. You leave her alone. I mean it."

Giggling could be heard in the background -- but the 16-year-old boy's father, Scott Litton, isn't amused.

"You don't want to overreact, but you don't want to under-react, either," he said. "You don't really know how serious to take it."

Litton called police and school officials. Garland was suspended with pay during the investigation.

President Bush was unavailable for comment. ---------------------------See our latest education-related entries right here. Visit today's edition of The Carnival of Education, guest hosted by Education In Texas, over there.