DETROIT (WDIV/CNN) – A family is suing a Detroit school district after they say a frustrated teacher who slammed a door, cutting off part of their son’s finger, faced no consequences for the alleged action.
Mother Camilla Barnes recalls the day in 2017 when the staff at Henderson Academy in Detroit called her about an incident involving her 7-year-old son, Jason Brandom Jr.
"'Something happened with your child. You may have to take him to the hospital,'" Barnes said officials told her.
The family contends in a lawsuit against the Detroit Public School Community District that Jason’s first-grade teacher kicked him out of class and forced him to sit on the floor.
When Jason tried entering the classroom again, the upset teacher slammed the door, severing the tip of his middle finger, according to the lawsuit.
Barnes claims when she arrived at the school, school leaders didn’t tell her the severity of Jason’s injuries. His hand was wrapped.
"The nurse hands me a bag and says, 'You might want to take this with you when you go to the emergency,'" Barnes said.
The mother used a ridesharing service to take the 7-year-old to the hospital after she says the school didn’t call an ambulance.
It wasn’t until they arrived at the emergency room that she discovered part of her son’s finger was missing.
"When they unwrapped it and I saw the bone sticking out, I was like, 'Oh, my God, his finger is gone,'" Barnes said.
Barnes hired an attorney after she claims the district took no action against the teacher following the alleged incident, nor did they offer an apology.
"You shouldn't be slamming doors, if you're that frustrated. You shouldn't even be dealing with kids, if you're that frustrated, because this is the product: my son now has an amputated finger," Barnes said.
The family’s attorney says he wants the district to put policies and procedures in place, so something like this doesn’t happen again.
The district says it had not received the lawsuit as of Tuesday, and it’s not commenting on pending litigation.
Copyright 2018 WDIV, Camilla Barnes via CNN. All rights reserved.
