North Richland Hills therapist accused of assaulting autistic 7-year-old boy
NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, Texas - Police in Tarrant County are looking to arrest a therapist accused of injuring an autistic 7-year-old boy.
North Richland Hills police say the incident happened on June 20.
The child's parents say they were told their non-verbal son harmed himself. But video from inside the ABA Interactive Therapy Center seems to contradict that claim.
Police are not naming the suspect. All they’re releasing is that she worked at the therapy center for a couple of years. A warrant has been issued for her arrest, and they’re still looking for her.
On June 27, parents reported that a woman who worked at the North Richland Hills behavioral therapy center allegedly assaulted their 7-year-old son, who is autistic and non-verbal.
"It's extremely upsetting. The victim is just such a vulnerable child, nonetheless, nonverbal. So it is something that we intend to fully investigate and do everything we can to bring justice for this family," said Sarah Chilutti with the North Richland Hills Police Department.
Police say the incident happened on June 20. The boy’s father picked him up from the center and was told that his son had a behavioral episode and scratched himself.
The parents had never seen this behavior before, so they pressed the center for details.
According to a lawsuit filed by the family, the mother asked to see a video of the incident, but she was initially refused. It was another employee that came forward with a recording of the incident.
"This teacher picked this poor boy up by his collar, slammed him into a wall while stepping over another autistic child," claimed Wesley Gould, the family’s attorney. "She can be seen with her hands close to her around his neck, and that's where the marks came from."
Picture provided in lawsuit
Police have that video as evidence. They also say the investigation uncovered other claims that allegedly went unreported.
The therapy center is now under investigation as well.
"We don't want to see this happen to any child or anyone," Chilutti said. "But if there is, we encourage them to come forward and talk to our investigators."
Gould says the parents have noticed a dramatic change in their son’s behavior since the incident.
"He's afraid to go new places, meet new people, and we don't know how that's going to affect him for the rest of his life," the attorney said. "But we're hoping that he'll be able to overcome it. But we know there's going to be a long road ahead of him."
Featured
Teenagers, 13 and 14, crash into North Richland Hills home after high-speed chase
The chase started in nearby Watauga. Police say speeds got as high as 100 miles per hour. Three teenagers — ages 13, 14 and 14 — were arrested shortly after.
The parents’ perseverance got them this far, and now they want their story to be a message to others.
"The parents in this lawsuit want to make the community and everybody around aware of what happened so this doesn't happen to another family," Gould said.
Right now, no other victims have come forward.
FOX 4 visited the ABA Interactive Therapy Center during its posted business hours, but the blinds were closed, and the parking lot was empty.
The suspect is facing charges of injury to a child.