A third grader with autistm in Portland, Oregon, reportedly experienced a traumatic incident on his fifth day of school in the Multnomah Education Service District.
Tiria Jones filed a complaint on March 14 in Multnomah County Circuit Court about the incident involving her 9-year-old son, who was going to Four Creek School. Tiria claims a school employee threw her son across the school's seclusion room, leaving bruises.
Initially, Tiria was told a version of the incident that security footage appears to show not to be the case. Now she's shedding light on the truth and how it impacted her little boy.
"I do not want any family to go through what we have gone through," Tiria Jones said in a statement announcing the complaint she filed against the school district, seeking $700,000 in damages for physical injuries to her son and emotional distress to them both.
"The district needs to understand the harm this caused and make changes to keep all students safe from abuse in the future."
Laura Conroy, a spokesperson for the Multnomah Education Service District, declined to comment on the situation. She also declined to identify the employee involved or clarify whether or not they'd been disciplined. The lawsuit claims the employee was only put on two days of leave following the incident on September 7, 2021.
Tiria was initially told that her son was placed in restraints and separated from his class after he climbed on top of a bookcase and began spitting on school employees. But when Tiria asked to see surveillance video of the incident, it showed a far different scene.
The video showed her son trying to open a locked door and ripping paper off of it. Then, a school worker grabbed him, Oregon Live reports. He was hauled down the hallway by the employee to the seclusion room.
The worker tried to push the boy into the room, but the boy stuck his foot out. The worker then reportedly picked him up and threw him across the room. The student allegedly hit his head as a result.
Physical punishment of students is illegal in Oregon public schools. Teachers may, however, use restraint and involuntary confinement as a last resort if they think it will prevent physical harm to other students or employees, according to an Oregon Department of Education manual.
The representative for the district noted the district trains staff to use verbal cues, holds, and seclusion as de-escalation tactics and informs families after staff members use them.
"Our staff work with some of our community's most impacted and vulnerable children," the district spokesperson said.
"It is our priority to keep students and staff safe while they are learning the skills they need to become resilient, strong, successful learners and community members."
