Teacher abused 2 children with autism in class, repeatedly hit 1 student, lawsuit says
A South Carolina preschool teacher abused two 4-year-old children in class, including a girl who parents say was smacked and repeatedly hit with a plastic pointer, a new lawsuit says.
The girl’s parents and the boy’s mother didn’t learn of the physical attacks on their children until May 1, more than a month after the incidents on March 30, according to the lawsuit.
The children have autism and are nonverbal, according to a complaint. They attended the Charleston County School District’s Head Start program for preschoolers, toddlers and babies at Midland Park Primary School in North Charleston.
Lasonya Washington, 42, the Head Start teacher named in the lawsuit, was arrested on May 13 by the North Charleston Police Department, according to incident reports provided to McClatchy News.
She faces four counts of unlawful conduct toward a child, jail records show.
Information regarding her legal representation wasn’t immediately available.
Washington was released from jail on May 14, the same day the lawsuit was filed, after posting an $80,000 bond, according to jail records.
Washington no longer works for the Charleston County School District, Andy Pruitt, the district’s communications director, told McClatchy News on May 15.
“We followed our protocols as soon as school and district leaders were made aware of concerns related to this matter,” Pruitt said in an emailed statement. “We have cooperated and will continue cooperating with law enforcement throughout the investigation.”
Washington started working for the school district in August 2012, according to Pruitt. She was a teacher for 3-year-old children, he said.
The parents’ lawsuit names the school district, Midland Park Primary School Head Start and the South Carolina Department of Social Services as defendants.
The state DSS declined McClatchy News’ request for comment on May 15.
Abuse detailed in the lawsuit, police reports
According to the lawsuit, on March 30, the 4-year-old girl was sitting in her chair in class when Washington walked up to her and grabbed her wrist.
Washington “dragged her toward the front of the classroom,” causing her to fall, the complaint says.
While the girl was on the floor, Washington “forcibly grabbed both of her legs and put them in the ‘criss cross’ position,” according to the complaint.
Afterward, she smacked the girl twice and grabbed a “large plastic ‘pointer,’” which she used to repeatedly hit the girl, the complaint says.
A police report details similar reports of abuse.
On May 1, a mother notified police that her child’s school informed her of a video of her daughter being assaulted, according to the North Charleston Police Department incident report.
The mother reported her daughter has been regularly “coming home with bruises on her back and arms” after school, the report says.
Midland Park Primary Principal Ian James told a police officer that he was aware of a video of Washington abusing the girl, and that Washington had been fired, according to the report.
The video reviewed by the officer showed Washington grabbing the girl by the wrist, dragging her to the front of class and resulting in her falling, the report says.
The video also showed Washington forcing the girl’s legs into a “criss-cross position,” as detailed in the lawsuit, and smacking her hand, according to the report.
“(Washington) then grabbed a pointer and cowered over (the girl) as if she was going to hit her with the pointer,” the report says.
Afterward, Washington “continued teaching as if nothing had occurred,” according to the report.
The lawsuit also says that on March 30, Washington dragged the 4-year-old boy across the class after he had been sitting on the floor, and forced his legs into a “criss cross” position when he fell.
Then, she forcibly squeezed his face, according to the complaint.
According to a second police incident report obtained by McClatchy News, Washington is accused of assaulting a 3-year-old girl at “nap time” on March 13.
The assault left the girl bruised, and she went to a hospital, the report says.
Her parents told police incidents of abuse “are on video” but they “were only allowed to watch one of the incidents,” according to the report.
The investigation into the abuse at the school is ongoing, according to police.
“It appears other students could have also been assaulted by (Washington),” the other incident report says.
Dozens of complaints
The school district’s Head Start program is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Since 2021, there have been 49 high-level complaints made about the program at Midland Park Primary School, according to the state’s DSS.
Attorney Sean Wilson, of Sean Wilson Law, is representing the families in their lawsuit, which was first reported by WCSC-TV.
“Children are humans, they are people. They need a voice, they need to be under trusted teachers, and a trusted school district. In this case they weren’t. It failed them,” Wilson told the TV station.
The parents seek an unspecified amount in damages and are seeking a jury trial.
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