Former Alabama teacher of the year Randi Nicole Jackson Staples has been arrested after a viral video purports to show her allegedly beating her son with a belt.

Mugshot for Randi Nicole Staples

Staples, 44, a resident of Grand Bay, Ala., was arrested and charged with willful child abuse of a child under the age of 18 on Nov. 16, according to arrest records obtained by PEOPLE. The arrest came after a video went viral, which appears to show Staples beating her 12-year-old son with a belt, according to local outlet Fox 10.

She was released from Metro Jail in Mobile, Ala. on Wednesday, Nov. 19. Jackson Staples, 24, her oldest son, told the outlet that he received the video from one of his siblings, and promptly posted the alleged video online. PEOPLE has reached out to an attorney for Staples.

“I didn’t feel like, you know, she should be working at the school or even doing that to my little brothers. You know, she done it to me my whole life, so I’m 24,” Jackson claimed to Fox 10. “Something about he wasn’t cleaning the kitchen like he was supposed to be, he left, went to the neighbor’s house, come back and then it transpired into that.”

In the video, a woman alleged to be Staples is seen beating the young boy with a belt as she yells at him while he cries, before she ultimately slams him to the floor by his hair.

Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch told Fox 10 that Staples’ alleged actions in the video were “egregious.”

“I mean I’m all about disciplining a child if you have problems with them, you know, if that involves a spanking, you know, everybody disciplines their children different ways, but that was way above and beyond any form of discipline,” Burch told the outlet.

PEOPLE has reached out to the MCSO for comment.

Staples worked as a teacher at Cottage Hill Christian Academy in Mobile, Ala., where she was previously named Teacher of the Year.

“Cottage Hill Christian Academy prioritizes the well-being of children above all else,” Head of School Chris Brazell said, according to local outlet WKRG. “We will always act promptly, transparently, and responsibly when matters arise that may impact the safety or integrity of our school community.”