HUNTINGTON ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥” Huntington High School teachers and aides left a disabled 15-year-old boy sitting in a soiled diaper, denied him food and water and mocked him as he moved his bowels, a lawsuit claims.
Since he began attending Huntington High in August, the boy has ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œbeen battered, belittled, barricaded into a corner, deprived of food and drink, and left to sit in his own feces and urine for extended periods of time,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ according to the suit, filed against the employees and Cabell County Schools by the childÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s parents, Teresa and Clinton Mills.
On Sept. 14, a special education teacher grabbed the boyÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s face in one class and in another, a substitute teacher and temporary aide cornered the child with two desks and a chair, laughed at him with other school employees as he moved his bowels, sprayed air freshener toward him and then left him sitting in his diaper, the suit says. The claim details a string of incidents in September that parents subsequently viewed on classroom video.
The suit describes the footage as ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œheartbreaking,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ showing the coupleÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œnon-verbal son being verbally and physically mistreated, neglected, and ultimately taken from his classroom ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥” and his school building ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥” for hours at a time by a man who was unknown to them.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Hallway and exterior videos were ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œtampered with, destroyed, or no longer exist,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ the suit claims.
The boy has been diagnosed with Phelan-McDermid Syndrome, which causes medical, intellectual and behavioral problems. Symptoms include muscle weakness, seizures, speech and developmental delays and autism spectrum disorder, according to the Cleveland Clinic. The condition affects 2,200 to 2,500 people worldwide. The boy has been diagnosed with autism, epilepsy, failure to thrive, pica and anxiety and requires constant supervision.
Named as defendants in the suit are temporary aide Tiffany Black, special education aide John Baker, special education teacher Jonna Davis, substitute teacher Mickey Copley and classroom teacher Natalie Mastrangelo.
Superintendent Ryan Saxe declined to comment.
On Aug. 31, shortly after the boy began classes, it was reported that his school iPad was broken. The child requires the device to communicate and must be kept on a toilet schedule because he cannot express the need to use the restroom. He also must maintain a high-caloric diet and should not walk for long periods of time.
After the iPad was broken, the parents claim, their boy began returning from school reeking of urine. The parents asked to see video from the boyÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s classes after his board-certified behavior analyst raised concerns.
The analyst reported to the boyÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s mother that the child was not being cleaned after soiling himself, was being fed finger foods rather than hot meals and was being removed from classes early.
On Oct. 19, the childÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s parents watched videos from four classes from Sept. 14-15. By this time, the iPad had been repaired, but the boy was denied it. Davis was seen ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œroughly grabbingÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ the studentÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s face before Black and Copley barricaded the boy and denied him food and drink and access to the restroom, the lawsuit states.
ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œIn sum, instead of being treated with compassion and respect, on September 14, 2022, (the child) was mocked, grabbed, forced into a corner, left to sit in his urine and feces, and repeatedly told to sit all day, all while being denied his only means of communication,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ the lawsuit says.
Baker twice took the boy from the classroom, according to the claim. The boy was unaccounted for over a period of one hour and 46 minutes Sept. 15 and one hour and 55 minutes Sept. 23. Baker said during those times he was with the boy on school property, the lawsuit states.
The boyÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s mother unsuccessfully sought hallway and exterior building videos to account for him during those periods.
The parents have demanded a jury trial and are seeking unspecified damages.
Sarah Ingram is a reporter for The Herald-Dispatch, covering public K-12 education. Follow her on Twitter @SIngramHD.
