Courtesy of EAG News:
The boy’s wrists were too small for the handcuffs, so Kenton County Deputy Sheriff Kevin Sumner put them around the misbehaving child’s biceps.
The boy, known as S.R. in a federal lawsuit, “has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and a history of trauma,” WKYT reports.
A video of the incident, which occurred at a Covington, Kentucky public school, was released in conjunction with the suit.
The boy wasn’t the only one allegedly treated that way. A 9-year-old girl was also shackled by the school resource officer in the same manner.
“Both children were being punished for behavior related to their disabilities. Neither was arrested nor charged with any criminal conduct,” according to the news station.
“Shackling children is not okay. It is traumatizing, and in this case it is also illegal,” says Susan Mizner, disability counsel for the ACLU, which has filed a lawsuit on the children’s behalf.
“Using law enforcement to discipline students with disabilities only serves to traumatize children. It makes behavioral issues worse and interferes with the school’s role in developing appropriate educational and behavioral plans for them.”
This is the very population of children that I work with and let me tell you that you simply do NOT want to involve the police unless you have no other choice.
I would also suggest that if this young child really only has a diagnosis of ADHD that this school is tragically ill equipped to deal with him, or any children with even more disruptive behaviors.
And this ACLU spokesperson in right on the money when she suggests that this response only serves to traumatize these kids further and make them much harder to handle moving forward.
Trust me I have been cursed at, spit upon, had my hair pulled, been bitten, and had a boy threaten to kill my entire family. In none of those instances did I use unnecessary force or traumatize the client in any way.
You either have the skills to deal with this population or you do not. And quite often law enforcement officials are simply not trained appropriately, nor do they have the temperament required.
Deputy sheriff shackles nine year old with behavioral problems. This is NEVER the right thing to do!
3:36 PM
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