Twenty Million Dollars Sought Over Bus Drivers Harassment Of Autistic Child
In what can only be described as a shocking and disgusting story, a Virginia school bus driver and her assistant repeatedly physically abused an 11-year-old autistic student, causing him lasting emotional harm and physical injuries. A lawsuit has been filed seeking 20 million dollars in damages.
Unfortunately, for the bus driver (who we can assume did not know?) a surveillance camera on the school bus showed them hitting the frightened student with a fly swatter as well as kicking, choking and beating him with their hands.
The student, who is not able to clearly speak, was fastened into his seat. He appears to be crying in anguish and at times flails out with his arms and legs trying to stop his assailants or strike them back.
What is so bad is that Mr. Timothy Milpatrick (the student’s single parent) had complained on previous occasions to the school about the trepidation his son was showing toward riding the bus. The father said interview that he was unable to get school personnel to respond to concerns that his son was being harmed when he first reported in November 2008 that Timothy was coming home with bruises and scratch marks on his arms and face.
"He ran inside the house and went to his room and wouldn't show me what was wrong," his father said. "He would just stare straight ahead. There was no talking," said Kilpatrick, a construction worker who now takes his son back and forth to a regional school that specializes in teaching disabled children.
"This case is about the expectations that every parent should have regarding the treatment and safety of their children in our schools," said an attorney for the family. "That expectation is especially critical when it comes to how disabled children are treated outside the protection and care of their parents."
The suit, filed ;ast week represents a rare instance in which videotape evidence of an apparently unprovoked physical harm against a student can be seen. "Getting that video evidence was significant," Brown said, noting that Lynchburg police recovered the footage during a criminal investigation of the incidents.
Whether criminal charges were brought against the school bus driver, Alice Davis Holland, and an assistant, Mary Alice Evans is not clear at this time. However,neither of the women have been employed by the school system since Sept. 30, 2009, according to school system spokesman.
In addition to the Bedford County School Board and the two adults on the bus, the suit names as a defendant Sara Staton, the school system's director of special services.
The suit alleges that the School Board and school employees had a legal duty under the Virginians with Disabilities Act to provide Timothy "with full and equal access to and enjoyment of" benefits of the transportation system "without fearing or facing threats to his physical or psychological safety or well-being."
