ST. LOUIS CO., Mo. (First Alert 4) - It has been a tough start to fourth grade for Payton Moreland, 10, who attends Townsend Elementary in the Hazelwood School District.

“I’ve been better, way better,” she told First Alert 4.

She said a dispute with a male classmate last week culminated in a violent altercation on Friday.

“They just pulled me from behind and dragged me from the concrete to the dirt,” she said.

Moreland’s mom, Trish Clark, said the school called her before the end of the day to alert her about the incident.

“The school called me and told me she was involved in a minor altercation with another incident and maybe two or three dreads had been detached,” she recalled.

Clark was not prepared for when her daughter came home from school.

“It resulted in her getting 12-16 dr

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