INDIANAPOLIS — A grandmother is preparing to sue Guion Creek Elementary after accusing the school of failing to intervene while her special needs grandson was beaten to the point of suffering a concussion during recess.
According to a tort claim filed on behalf of the family, the attack occurred on March 6 and involved several students assaulting the special needs student during recess. The student was allegedly punched repeatedly with a closed fist and even kicked while attempting to crawl away.
The tort notice accuses staff members of failing to intervene and stop the attack despite numerous staff members supervising the students during recess.
"These staff members did nothing to help (the student) or to stop the abuse they witnessed," the tort notice declares.
According to the grandmother, who was not identified in the documents, after a few other students helped her grandson back to his feet and led him to a teacher, the student was just told to go and see the nurse. The grandmother didn't know about the attack until she picked up her grandson and noticed his facial swelling.
She reportedly received a phone call from the school later, "hours after the incident occurred and school was dismissed," the tort claims.
According to the grandmother, the school informed her "that staff could not intervene and stop students who are fighting."
"This is not an isolated incident but rather indicative of a broader issue within Indiana's schools," said Catherin Michael, an attorney representing the grandmother and her grandson. "There is a severe lack of training for staff in dealing with bullying and ensuring student safety."
The grandmother ended up taking her grandson to a hospital where a CT scan was conducted. The tort notice claims the student was treated for "head trauma associated with an assault, a concussion, and a black eye."
The student reportedly remembers little of the attack as "everything went black, leaving him just afraid," due to the repeated blows to his head.
A day after the attack, the grandmother filed a report with the police. The tort notice accuses the school of not reporting the assault to either Indianapolis police or DCS.
"Schools have a duty to protect their students, and when they fail, they must be held accountable," said Tammy Meyer, another attorney representing the grandmother and her grandson.
The attack isn't the only time the school allegedly failed the child. According to the tort notice, the student has been the victim of severe bullying throughout the entire school year. The tort accuses the school of failing to report this bullying and failing to prevent it or create a safe environment for students.
"I am terrified every day that my grandson goes to school," said the grandmother. "The lack of action and care by the school staff is appalling. They are supposed to protect our children, but they failed miserably. I fear for his safety every moment he is there."
The grandmother now reportedly goes to the school every day to sit and watch her grandson at recess.
This litigation against Guion Creek Elementary isn't the first time the school has been accused of failing to protect students. In February, police officers were called to the school to investigate an unrelated fight on the playground where a teacher is accused of standing by and doing nothing to break it up.
This teacher, Reshanda Allen, is now being charged with felony counts of neglect of a dependent after police opened an investigation into the matter.
Both these reports of fights breaking out in schools and teachers failing to step in also come on the heels of a lawsuit accusing an Indianapolis teacher of not only failing to stop a 7-year-old from being assaulted in class but actively egging on the beating while filming the assault.
FOX59/CBS4 has reached out for comment from Guion Creek Elementary and the Metropolitan School District of Pike Township. This story will be updated if a response is provided.