Parents of Churchill HS Student with Autism Sue After Child is Restrained, Put in Handcuffs

[Anonymous]

Another appalling allegation of treatment of a special needs kid.

Mother Says Autistic Son Was Restrained, Put in Handcuffs After Episode on School Bus
Kensington family files lawsuit against MCPS, questions training of aide and driver

A Kensington family is suing the Montgomery County school board after they say their non-verbal, autistic son was unnecessarily restrained aboard a special education school bus.

The mother of the boy claims her son boarded a bus specifically designated for youth with special needs in October 2017 “stressed and uneasy” and when he tried to indicate he needed help, the bus’s driver and attendant accused him of attempting to hurt them and they physically restrained him before calling police, according to the lawsuit filed last month in county Circuit Court.

The boy, then a student at Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, had been enrolled in county public schools since fourth grade and was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at 4 years old.

The boy and his mother are named in court documents but Bethesda Beat typically does not identify minors who have not committed a crime, and releasing the mother’s identity could identify the student.

Lawyers for the family and school system spokesman declined comment, citing ongoing litigation.

The student was enrolled in a specialized education program for autistic students and the school system provided transportation to and from the program at Churchill, according to the lawsuit.

[Anonymous]

OK now we have heard one side...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK now we have heard one side...

NP: Bus drivers and their aides don’t get to restrain kids. Period.

[Anonymous]

So if the kid was actually going to hurt the supervising and driving adults - what should they do? Just because he has autism does not mean he was not also acting in a dangerous or threatening manner.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK now we have heard one side...

NP: Bus drivers and their aides don’t get to restrain kids. Period.

The article in Bethesda Beat does not concur. It outlines the cases where it is allowed. Not saying they acted approptiately but it seems to be allowed when there is a danger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK now we have heard one side...

NP: Bus drivers and their aides don’t get to restrain kids. Period.

So if someone gets up and tries to grab the steering wheel while the bus is going 40 mph, no restraining? If the kid tries to crawl out a window when the bus is moving, no restraining? If a student is on top of another student beating him up or kicking or biting another student who is in a wheelchair, no restraining? If a student is trying to throw something heavy out the window into another car while the vehicles are on a freeway, no restraining.?
What crazy world do you live in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK now we have heard one side...

NP: Bus drivers and their aides don’t get to restrain kids. Period.

So if someone gets up and tries to grab the steering wheel while the bus is going 40 mph, no restraining? If the kid tries to crawl out a window when the bus is moving, no restraining? If a student is on top of another student beating him up or kicking or biting another student who is in a wheelchair, no restraining? If a student is trying to throw something heavy out the window into another car while the vehicles are on a freeway, no restraining.?
What crazy world do you live in?

Yeah. That didn’t happen here. But enjoy making up excuses to rationalize traumatizing a disabled teen in this way.

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/mother-says-autistic-son-was-restrained-put-in-handcuffs-after-episode-on-school-bus/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK now we have heard one side...

NP: Bus drivers and their aides don’t get to restrain kids. Period.

So if someone gets up and tries to grab the steering wheel while the bus is going 40 mph, no restraining? If the kid tries to crawl out a window when the bus is moving, no restraining? If a student is on top of another student beating him up or kicking or biting another student who is in a wheelchair, no restraining? If a student is trying to throw something heavy out the window into another car while the vehicles are on a freeway, no restraining.?
What crazy world do you live in?

Yeah. That didn’t happen here. But enjoy making up excuses to rationalize traumatizing a disabled teen in this way.

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/mother-says-autistic-son-was-restrained-put-in-handcuffs-after-episode-on-school-bus/

Well they claim he was yelling, then stood up and continued to yell when they told him to stop while the bus was in motion. They then say he tried to bite them.

[Anonymous]

Good for them.

It’s so bad some of us don’t even send similar kids to public schools because we don’t want them abused.
It should not be this way. Our kids deserve an appropriate, free education just like everyone else. They shouldn’t be experiencing abuse at school, but it happens a lot and there’s no excuse for that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So if the kid was actually going to hurt the supervising and driving adults - what should they do? Just because he has autism does not mean he was not also acting in a dangerous or threatening manner.

Instead of hiring people with extra training, an enhanced ability to think and problem solve and a sense of empathy for SN people, the school systems hires uneducated people that they can pay the least amount of money right ofc the street to care for SN kids. What could go wrong?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good for them.

It’s so bad some of us don’t even send similar kids to public schools because we don’t want them abused.
It should not be this way. Our kids deserve an appropriate, free education just like everyone else. They shouldn’t be experiencing abuse at school, but it happens a lot and there’s no excuse for that.

The State of Maryland or the US Department of Education should audit the Confidential Files of students with disabilities at Churchill. They would find other cases at the school. It's shameful what MCPS allows happen to children. My prayers goes out to the family suing MCPS. I hope they are successful with the lawsuit.

[Anonymous]

Why are there monsters on this thread?

You have nothing better to do than slander a mentally disordered teen who was illegally restrained?

Have you been on a regular school bus where 20+ students make a huge volume of noise daily? Yet this one teen starts yelling, and he's put in handcuffs?

Shame on you. I hope no one you care about ever has an episode like this.

[Anonymous]

I agree there is far more to this story. The handcuffs are inappropriate but we don't know how out of control the situation was. Some of her comments were very dismissive of her child's behavior which makes me wonder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK now we have heard one side...

NP: Bus drivers and their aides don’t get to restrain kids. Period.

So if someone gets up and tries to grab the steering wheel while the bus is going 40 mph, no restraining? If the kid tries to crawl out a window when the bus is moving, no restraining? If a student is on top of another student beating him up or kicking or biting another student who is in a wheelchair, no restraining? If a student is trying to throw something heavy out the window into another car while the vehicles are on a freeway, no restraining.?
What crazy world do you live in?

Yeah. That didn’t happen here. But enjoy making up excuses to rationalize traumatizing a disabled teen in this way.

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/mother-says-autistic-son-was-restrained-put-in-handcuffs-after-episode-on-school-bus/

Well they claim he was yelling, then stood up and continued to yell when they told him to stop while the bus was in motion. They then say he tried to bite them.

This is a special needs child. Staff should be trained to deal with incidents like this, and the training doesn't involve putting a minor in handcuffs for having a developmental disability that they can't control.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why are there monsters on this thread?

You have nothing better to do than slander a mentally disordered teen who was illegally restrained?

Have you been on a regular school bus where 20+ students make a huge volume of noise daily? Yet this one teen starts yelling, and he's put in handcuffs?

Shame on you. I hope no one you care about ever has an episode like this.

+1 Seriously. Between this thread and the one about the special needs African American elementary school kid whose school called the cops on him because he had play money, it has not been a good day for MCPS.