Former Bartlett High School Teacher Garry Brodersen Convicted Of Pouring Liquid Nitrogen On Student

WHEATON, Ill. (AP) — A former chemistry teacher at a suburban Chicago high school has been convicted of reckless conduct for a 2018 incident in which he poured liquid nitrogen on a student during a science demonstration, injuring the youth.

A DuPage County jury on Tuesday also found Garry Brodersen, 66, guilty of one count of endangering the health or life of a child following a two-day trial, prosecutors said. That charge and the reckless conduct charge are both misdemeanors.

Brodersen, of Carpentersville, was performing a science demonstration in front of a class in May 2018 at Bartlett High School when prosecutors said he poured liquid nitrogen on a male student's chest and groin area. The student suffered burn injuries to a finger and his groin, the state's attorney's office said.

"Mr. Brodersen displayed extremely poor judgment when he doused a student with a dangerous chemical during a science demonstration," DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlinsaid in a written statement.

The student had volunteered to take part in the science demonstration but did so with the understanding that the liquid nitrogen would be poured over his chest area, not on his groin area, a spokesman for the state's attorney's office said.

The student has since fully recovered, the spokesman said.

Brodersen resigned from his position and voluntarily surrendered his teaching certificate in June 2018, following the incident, a spokeswoman for School District U-46, which includes Bartlett High School, told the Chicago Tribune.

Brodersen is expected in court again March 18 for post-trial motions or sentencing.

Crime