Texas teacher 'locked Covid-positive son in car boot'

A US teacher has been arrested after allegedly locking her Covid-positive son in a car boot to protect herself from exposure to the virus as she drove to a testing site, say local media.

Sarah Beam, 41, is reportedly charged with endangering a child.

A witness called police after hearing someone in the vehicle's trunk on 3 January at the site in Harris County, Texas, according to click2Houston.com.

The teacher reportedly opened the boot to reveal the boy lying inside.

Ms Beam said her 13-year-old son had tested positive for Covid-19 and she was taking him to the Pridgeon Stadium location for another test to confirm the result, according to local media.

She reportedly said she had placed the teenager in the car boot because she did not want to be infected herself.

A health worker told her there would be no coronavirus test until the boy was allowed to sit in the back seat of the car, reports ABC affiliate KTRK-TV.

Ms Beam has been working as a teacher at Cypress Falls High School since 2011, but is now on administrative leave, according to local media.

Cy-Fair ISD Police Department said: "CFPD was alerted that a child was in the trunk of a car at a drive-thru Covid-19 testing site earlier this week.

"Law enforcement conducted a full investigation, resulting in a warrant for arrest. Thankfully, the child was not harmed."

Sgt Richard Standifer, of the Texas Department of Public Safety, told local TV station KHOU 11 that the boy could have been seriously hurt if the vehicle had ended up in a collision.

"I have never heard of somebody being put in a trunk because they tested positive for anything," said Sgt Standifer.