ARLINGTON, TX (KTVT/CNN) - The picture shows a 7-year-old boy in handcuffs, surrounded by Dallas Independent School District Police at a mental health facility, where he has been since Tuesday.
“My son is a special-needs child, and he requires those special needs,” said April Obin, the boy’s mother.
Obin said her son has ADHD and a mood disorder and disrupts class several times a week at Gabe P. Allen Elementary, where he has trained counselors to help him cope.
She said her son had an episode that turned violent after he banged his head against the wall.
The school was having standardized testing, and his counselor wasn’t available, so they called Obin, said the family’s attorney, Amar Dhillon.
“Before she could get to the school, the DISD police department was called, and handcuffed the child and took the child away,” Dhillon said.
Dhillon made serious accusations about excessive force and has photos that he says show bruising from the boy being hit with a baton on the legs. He claims marks on the boy’s back came from a taser.
“He did vividly describe being shocked and his body convulsing, and he was very clear about that,” Dhillon said.
The school district said in a statement, “Due to federal confidentiality laws protecting the privacy of all students and their families, we are unable to confirm or deny the matter reported.”
The family’s attorney said he and the district attorney are working through the details of the case. As for the boy, he was released from the hospital on Monday, but it’s unclear if he will return to the school.
Copyright 2017 KTVT via CNN. All rights reserved.
