A mother from Amelia County is suing for millions of dollars in damages, claiming that four employees of Amelia County Elementary School (ACES) knew her autistic child was being tormented but did nothing to stop the abuse, which included beatings, stab wounds, concussions, and more.
The case, which was filed in the Amelia County Circuit Court, includes specific allegations of negligence made by Lisa Davis, the principal of ACES, Andy Henderson, the assistant principal, Katie Elder, a fifth-grade teacher, and Maria Stephens, a special education teacher.
The mother of “Jane Doe,” who was ten years old at the time, is suing each defendant for $5 million in compensatory damages and $350,000 in punitive damages, for a total of $6.4 million. The mother claims that between August 2021 and February 2022, at least three other students “constantly bullied and tormented” her daughter.
It is said that Davis, Henderson, Elder, and Stephens knew about the bullying from the start and repeatedly pledged to stop it but did nothing.
“All of the harm that followed to Jane Doe that was caused by the bullies was foreseeable to the defendants,” the lawsuit reads.
In an interview, Jane Doe’s lawyer, John Merrick, stated, “Anyone who looks at the allegations … or has experience with bullying, they know the damage it can do — especially to a child.”
Jane was homeschooled for a while before returning to ACES, Merrick explained.
According to the lawsuit, Jane “came home with bruises and horrible stories of being bullied” shortly after she started working there in August 2021, marking the beginning of the bullying.
By October 2021, Jane Doe’s mother claimed that the bullying was having an effect on both her mental and physical well-being.
“[Her mother told Davis that] Jane Doe was starting to suffer from depression and anxiety as a result of the bullying,” the lawsuit reads. “Jane Doe leaves the house crying every morning saying how horrible her day is going to be [and] when she comes home, she is crying about everything that happened that day.”
The lawsuit claims that Jane, who has autism, was “particularly vulnerable” to bullying because of her “sensitive developmental issues.” According to reports, all defendants were aware of her special needs and she had an Individualized Education Program (IEP) at the time of these incidences.
According to the lawsuit, the bullying caused Jane to suffer “severe physical and mental harm, including but not limited to pain, suffering, inconvenience, contusions, a concussion, eye injuries, stab wounds, severe headaches, depression, anxiety, worry, sleeplessness, feelings of hopelessness and suicidal ideations.”
According to the lawsuit, Jane was treated by the school nurse on several different times for the wounds she sustained at the hands of the bullies. Each time, the nurse informed the defendants of these instances.
The four defendants met with Jane’s parents on February 22, 2022, to discuss the bullying. Similar pledges to “ensure that the bullies were kept away from Jane Doe, that the bullies would have no contact with Jane Doe [and] that Jane Doe would not be abused” were made during this meeting, according to the lawsuit.
Jane’s teacher, Elder, said that she would be on maternity leave. According to the lawsuit, she “advised to notify Jane Doe’s substitute teacher of the persistent bullying and instructions to keep the bullies away from Jane Doe.”
Elder is charged with not doing this, though. On February 23, 2022, the following day, Jane was allegedly abandoned by her bullies. One of them then attacked her, according to the lawsuit, and the assault was caught on camera.On Friday, May 9, at 9 a.m., there will be a pre-trial hearing. After that, on June 23, a five-day jury trial will begin.
