A teacher at the Montrose Early Childhood Center, a preschool in South Orange, has been suspended following an incident on March 27 in which a 4-year-old child with autism was allegedly held upside by his ankles and shaken, according to the child’s family.
“This baby has bruises everywhere. It seems like she was fighting this kid,” Candie Wilkins, the child’s grandmother, told NJ.com.
Wilkins also told NJ.com that that although the incident occurred on a Monday, “the family was not notified until about 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday,” when Principal Bonita Samuels called the child’s mother.
Read NJ.com’s full report here.
South Orange-Maplewood Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ronald Taylor responded to media inquiries with the following statement: “Thank you for your inquiry, the health and safety of our students are the highest priority for the South Orange and Maplewood School District. We are cooperating with the appropriate authorities and are unable to offer further comments due to the confidentiality applicable to student and personnel matters.”
Wilkins reported that Samuels called the NJ Department of Child Protection and Permanency and that the family had reported the incident to the South Orange police.
South Orange Police Chief Ernesto Morillo told Village Green today, “There is an incident report and SOPD is working with all appropriate agencies to ensure a thorough investigation.”
This story will be updated.
From ABC7:
