Sponsored message
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Students Discover High School Teacher Hanging In Classroom

This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.

Students at a Placentia high school discovered a teacher's body hanging in a classroom today.

Placentia police responded to a report that a teacher was found dead around 8:40 a.m. at El Dorado High School located at 1651 Valencia Avenue, reported ABC7. Placentia Police Dept. Lt. Eric Point told LAist that several students discovered the body when they went to class for their first period.

When authorities arrived at the scene, they found a female teacher not breathing and without a pulse. Orange County Fire Authority and paramedics tried to revive the teacher, but declared her dead at the scene.

"Our investigation indicates that the female teacher's cause of death is suicide," Point said.

Police have not released the name of the teacher as they're looking to first notify her next of kin. Grief counselors are on the campus talking to students, and the students who found the teacher's body have been released to their parents.

UPDATE: 1:55 p.m.: Police have identified the teacher as photography instructor Jillian Jacobson, according to the L.A. Times. Jacobson was also a ceramics and photography teacher at Cal State Fullerton's kids' art summer camp.

UPDATE 11:25 a.m.: El Dorado High School has not identified the teacher either. However, some students and teachers have tweeted out their condolences regarding teacher Jillian Jacobson:

Sponsored message

If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone, remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt, and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.

Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.

If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible donation today