TX: Homicide ruled in 4th death at troubled kids' facility

Boy, 16, asphyxiated in November after being restrained inside a closet (Owens had refused to show the staffer what he was holding in his hand, which turned out to be the cap of a pen)

By TERRI LANGFORD HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Jan. 7, 2011

Texas - The restraint death of a 16-year-old boy at Daystar Residential Inc., a facility for troubled children, has been ruled a homicide caused by "complications of mechanical asphyxia," according to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Science.

Michael Kevin Owens suffocated and died on Nov. 5 after a Daystar staffer placed him in a physical restraint inside a bedroom closet because he would not show the staffer what he held in his hand. Owens' death was the fourth restraint-related fatality to occur at Daystar or its sister facilities. Daystar is located 25 miles south of Houston.

The name of the staffer has not been released, and the case will go before a grand jury to determine whether criminal charges will be filed, according to Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne.

Owens' death occurred just days after the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services notified Daystar that it was on probation, and the incident prompted the agency to place the Manvel-based facility, for the third time, under the watch of a state monitor.

The agency is reviewing the autopsy report, which was issued to them late Thursday.

"We have been going through a very deliberate process of evaluating Daystar's state license, and this ruling is an important piece," said Patrick Crimmins, DFPS' spokesman.

For more information, please follow the link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7369710.html

TX: State Abuse - Despite reforms, abuse in state institutions remains high.

Excerpt from The Texas Observer:

http://www.texasobserver.org/cover-story/state-abuse#txlege

April 19, 2010

By Dave Mann

Despite reforms by state lawmakers, abuse and neglect of Texans with mental retardation in state-run institutions has increased the past three years, according to anObserver analysis of state data. Reforms enacted in response to a high-profile abuse scandal have left the facilities with fewer residents and more staff, yet confirmed allegations of abuse rose 57 percent between 2007 and 2009. However, the number of abuse cases has dropped slightly so far in 2010, indicating that perhaps the latest reforms are having some effect.

For the past four years, Texas’ 13 sprawling, state-run institutions for the mentally retarded—formerly known as State Schools and which the Legislature recently renamed State Supported Living Centers—have been the source of horrific tales of abuse. Since 2005, investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice and numerous media outlets, including the Observer (see “Systemic Neglect,” May 1, 2008), have documented hundreds of instances in which Texans with mental retardation were beaten, neglected and, in some instances, killed by the staff charged with caring for them. In the most famous incident, workers at the Corpus Christi State School recorded a “fight club” video in which mentally disabled residents were forced to beat each other.

The abuse scandal was rooted in years of under-funding by the Legislature. Low pay and astronomical staff turnover, which ran as high as 70 percent in some facilities, led the institutions to hire low-grade employees—and in a few instances convicted felons—who never should have been caring for vulnerable, and often volatile, residents.

Despite reforms passed in the past two legislative sessions—including a 12-percent funding increase and nearly 3,000 additional caregivers—the number of abuse and neglect cases remains high.

Confirmed cases of abuse in State Supported Living Centers rose 57 percent between 2007 and 2009, according to an Observer analysis of state data, from 458 incidents in 2007 to 719 last year.

In the first six months of fiscal year 2010, which began in September, confirmed cases of abuse and neglect have dipped by 19 percent. State Supported Living Centers are on pace to report 580 cases of abuse in 2010, which while lower than 2007’s peak, is still historically high.

For the full article, please click on the following link: http://www.texasobserver.org/cover-story/state-abuse#txlege

TX: 2009 Restraint Report Issued; Number Unchanged Since 2008

Excerpt from the Texas Tribune:

Still Restrained

By Emily Ramshaw

January 10, 2010

Texas educators forcibly pinned down students with disabilities as many times in 2009 as they did in 2008, despite efforts to curb the practice in public schools.

The static numbers hide dramatic drops in restraints in many large school districts. Because many smaller school districts reported restraints for the first time in 2009, statewide numbers remained virtually unchanged.

School districts like Leander and Garland, which had some of the most restraints in 2008, cut their numbers in half in 2009, according to data collected by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). But some tiny school districts reported dozens of restraints, even when they had just a few disabled students.

Of the 10 school districts that reported the most restraints of disabled students in 2008, all but one saw fewer restraints in 2009. The Northside school district in San Antonio reported 1,604 restraints in 2009 — up almost 13 percent from the previous year. Meanwhile, Leander’s restraints dropped by 55 percent. Austin’s fell by 22 percent. And Garland more than halved its restraints.

*******

Advocates for children with disabilities say it’s a good sign that restraints appear to be dropping in many large school districts — though they question whether the practice is being phased out, or whether districts have simply changed their reporting method.

“If there are some drops, I think it’s entirely random,” said Steve Elliot, an attorney who reviews school districts restraints for the non-profit Advocacy, Inc. “There is no evidence the state has been doing anything about it.”

And they say restraints, which are dangerous and are supposed to be used only as a last resort, are still far too prevalent in Texas schools. In both 2008 and 2009, Texas educatorsrestrained students with disabilities roughly 18,000 times a year — an average of 100 times a day. In some cases, the children were injured, suffering everything from bruises and black eyes to broken bones.

To access the full article, please click the following link: http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2010/jan/12/still-restrained/

Coaches Gone Wild

Excerpt from Tampa Bay Online:

Tough is OK; abuse is not

By Joey Johnston

January 10, 2010

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/jan/10/na-tough-is-ok-abuse-is-not/

USF Coach Fired

For the third time in five weeks, a high-profile college football coach lost his job after being accused of physical or verbal abuse toward a player, even while explaining the actions as routine discipline and motivation.

The University of South Florida fired head football coach Jim Leavitt on Friday after a monthlong probe concluded he grabbed a player by the throat, slapped him, then lied about it to investigators.

That continued the disturbing trend.

On Dec. 3, University of Kansas coach Mark Mangino was forced to resign after complaints of abuse surfaced from former and current players, including one who said he was forced to crawl across searing-hot artificial turf after failing to weigh in, leaving him with blisters and a patch of missing skin.

On Dec. 30, Texas Tech University coach Mike Leach was fired after being accused of mistreating a player with a concussion, forcing him to remain in a darkened shed as a form of punishment.

"I have never seen anything like this, ever," Teaff said. "I'm baffled. I don't even know how to describe what is happening here."

For the full article, please click the following link: http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/jan/10/na-tough-is-ok-abuse-is-not/

TX: Special Needs Student Put in Restroom Timeout Sparks Controversy

How should teachers punish your children? What if your child has special needs? News 3 has uncovered a case where a special needs child was punished when her teacher would shut her in the bathroom with the lights out on several different occasions.

Posted: 7:57 PM Dec 8, 2009
Reporter: Shannon Dillon
Email Address: dillon@kbtx.com

---

Special Needs Student Put in Restroom Timeout Sparks Controversy

Kiersten Jordy is like most 7-year-olds, but in many ways she's not. Doctors have diagnosed Kiersten with mental retardation and carries traits of autism and Down's Syndrome. Doctors also say Kiersten may never have a classic diagnosis. Larry and Janet Jordy say their daughter can't speak in full sentences and is only able to communicate a word or two. The Jordy's say they were surprised to learn in late May 2009, that their daughter's teacher, Sharon Figueron, put Kiersten in a dark, closed restroom as a form of timeout.

"We would never, never agree with putting her in a dark bathroom, there's nothing right about that," said Larry Jordy.


Progress reports of Kiersten's daily activities were sent home weekly for the Jordys to sign. However, the Jordy's say they were aware of Kiersten being placed in timeout but not being put in a dark, closed restroom as timeout.

"Honestly I don't remember signing it or reading it. Maybe I talked to her about it. Did I tell her it was okay? Absolutely not. I'm sure I would not just let it go," said Janet Jordy.

According to a 16 page document released by a Certified Hearing Examiner, the Jordy's found out about the restroom punishment from a Bonham Elementary teacher's aide. The report says on May 13, 2009, the aide went to get Kiersten for inclusion class and found her in the restroom with the lights out. After learning of the restroom punishment, the Jordy's filed a complaint with the Texas Education Agency (TEA) on June 1, just one day before Bryan I.S.D. administrators received information that the restroom had been used as timeout for Kiersten.

Progress notes written by Figueron show the dark, closed restroom was used as punishment on February 12, 2009 as well. Figueron wrote, "I put her sitting on the bathroom and shut the door. To make it short, she (student) turned the light on, got a mat, opened the door and constantly defied me. We then had a snack, and I left her sitting there watching us and told her she couldn't have one. The snacks were for the children that listened and behaved."

The Hearing Examiner's report also said progress notes Kiersten was placed in the restroom as a consequence for behaviors on May 12, 2009 and May 15, 2009. Based on the February 12, 2009 progress note the TEA initiated a complaint of suspected child abuse to the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services.

The Jordy's say regardless of when Bryan I.S.D. administrators found out about the incidents they would have still filed a complaint with the TEA. The Jordy's say the district dropped the ball by not taking enough action after the Jordy's say they withdrew a May 2008 complaint with the TEA at the request of the school district. The Jordy's say during the 2007-2009 school years Kiersten was a student at Bonham Elementary, the school district has made broken promises that the situation between Kiersten and her teacher would improve. Shortly, after filing their complaint with the TEA the Jordy's sought legal counsel.

"I think the public should know the administration was pretty much prepared to sweep it under the rug," said the Jordy's attorney, Ty Clevenger.

"We certainly didn't try to sweep it under the rug. We moved forward on it in a very fast moving way," said Bryan I.S.D. Superintendent, Mike Cargill.

While the TEA was investigating the restroom incidents, Bryan I.S.D. also launched its own investigation. In April 2009, Bryan I.S.D. hired a consultant to help Figueron in developing behavior modification strategies for Kiersten. The hearing examiner's report says the consultant provided training on the behavior plan that was implemented and modeled appropriate behavior for Figueron. The consultant did not recommend the use of timeout, and Figueron did not discuss her use of timeout with Kiersten with the consultant. The report also shows Figueron received training in August 2007 and July 2008 on positive behavior intervention strategies, including required procedures for using timeout as a behavior strategy with disabled children. Figueron also received training on instructional interventions for students exhibiting non-compliant behavior and de-escalating techniques.

On July 31st, a hearing examiner recommended the school board terminate Figueron's contract. The investigation showed [there] was no legitimate reason for Figueron to place Kiersten in a restroom as Figueron described to have a "few minutes to eat lunch."

The TEA found that Figueron violated her term contract, board policies and directives of the Texas Administrative Code by "placing a mentally retarded child with limited speech capabilities in the restroom for timeout behavior consequences and shutting the door."

On October 28th, Figueron's termination was finalized. News 3 spoke to Figueron and her attorney, and both say she should not have lost her job. Figueron's attorney says she is being used as a scapegoat because Bryan I.S.D. did not provide her with information as far as training on how to handle timeout situations specifically involving Kiersten. Figueron's attorney said the consultant Bryan I.S.D. hired in April 2009 never addressed the timeout method Figueron should use with Kiersten. Her attorney also said Figueron was not aware she was breaking the Texas Administrative Code by using a dark, closed restroom as punishment for Kiersten.

Meanwhile, the Jordy's say Figueron's termination is not their biggest concern.

"We're already having to deal with the counseling and everything for Kiersten and so we can't go backwards to help that. But maybe we can help the one child who might be struggling through the same thing that can't talk like Kiersten," said Janet Jordy.

The Jordy's say this whole ordeal has had a severe impact on Kiersten. Because she's now afraid of the dark and can't sleep alone at night. In early December, the Jordy's removed Kiersten from Bonham Elementary and enrolled her in another school.

Sharon Figueron is not eligible to be re-hired in Bryan I.S.D. although she has 15 years of experience in education, and 10 years with Bryan I.S.D. Her attorney says since she was terminated she hasn't taken any legal action, and will "move on with her life."

Meanwhile, the TEA said the procedures Bryan I.S.D. took in handling the matter were properly done.

TX: School cop pleads no contest to abuse

Express News

Web Posted: 11/17/2009 11:34 CST

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/School_cop_pleads_no_contest_to_abuse.html

A former Edgewood Independent School District police officer agreed Tuesday to surrender his badge after pleading no contest to molesting a teen.

In addition, Jose Manuel Sanchez, 59, faces up to eight years in prison next month when state District Judge Juanita Vasquez-Gardner is scheduled to sentence him on the sexual assault charge. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors have agreed not to contest how much prison time Sanchez should face.

Sanchez’s accuser, now 20, reported the abuse to San Antonio officers in 2007, saying Sanchez fondled her from the time she was 11 to 16 years old. The incidents were not related to his job with the school district, authorities said. Sanchez was suspended from the district that same year.

The victim approved of Tuesday’s plea bargain because it would save her the pain of having to revisit the memories on the witness stand, said Adriana Biggs, chief of the district attorney’s white-collar crimes division.

TX: Freshman says fellow student sexually abused her in school gym

November 19, 2009 9:55 AM
By JARED TAYLOR/The Monitor

http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/div-63924-marginmidside-class.html

ALAMO — Police arrested a high school senior after an alleged sexual assault behind the bleachers in a high school gymnasium.

A 14-year-old freshman girl told a school counselor about 1 p.m. Monday that Moises Martinez, 17, had sexually assaulted her there, said Alamo Police Chief Arturo Espinoza.

The alleged incident reportedly occurred Monday morning during school hours. No one else was in the gym at the time.

Investigators are “going under the assumption” that the girl and Martinez did not know each other before the suspected sexual assault, Espinoza said. He added that the girl was “doing OK” and underwent an exam that supported her sexual abuse claim.

It is The Monitor’s policy not to identify those who may be victims of sex crimes.

Because Martinez is 17 years old, authorities charged him as an adult. He was arraigned Tuesday in Alamo Municipal Court on one count of sexual assault, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000 upon conviction. He remained at the Hidalgo County Jail late Wednesday afternoon in lieu of an $80,000 bond.

Alamo police plan to turn the case over to the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office, which will present it before a grand jury, Espinoza said.

“It’s probably something where they met and it happened and now they have to deal with that,” he said of the alleged incident.

In a prepared statement, Pharr-San Juan-Alamo school district officials confirmed the sexual assault investigation and said they were cooperating with Alamo police.

TX: Juvenile jail sex abuse trial postponed

11/17/2009

Associated Press

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D9C1EBC00.html

A former Texas juvenile jail official won't face trial in a sexual abuse case until April.

State District Judge Jay Gibson this week postponed the trial of former West Texas State School administrator Ray Edward Brookins from December until April 19.

Brookins, along with John Paul Hernandez, is accused of sexually abusing teen inmates at the Texas Youth Commission jail in remote Pyote (PYE'-oht), Texas. Brookins' case was originally set to be tried in Monahans, but it was moved earlier this year about 35 miles north to Odessa.

A trial date for Hernandez hasn't been set.

TX: BISD sued in case of boy left on bus for hours

By KEN FOUNTAIN

November 15, 2009
Posted: November 14, 2009, 11:55 AM CST

http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/news/local/bisd_sued_in_case_of_boy_left_on_bus_for_hours.html

The grandmother of a 4-year-old boy who was left alone on a Beaumont ISD bus for several hours in January has filed suit against the school district.

Sharon Hill, a disabled woman who raises her three grandchildren, put preschooler Derrick W. Zachery on the bus early to take him to Southerland School on the morning of Jan. 13.

When the bus arrived at Southerland School, he was overlooked and the bus returned to the district's Transportation Center on Milam Street, the lawsuit filed Thursday in Jefferson County court. Again, he was overlooked.

No one at the school contacted Hill to tell her that her grandson had not arrived at school, the lawsuit states.

Shortly after the incident, Hill told The Enterprise that her grandson had been "very afraid."

The case is assigned to the 58th District Court of Judge Bob Wortham.

TX: Assistant Principal Arrested After Teen Alleges Abuse

Reported by: Cristina Rendon
Last Update: 11/13 7:05 pm

http://www.krgv.com/news/local/story/Assistant-Principal-Arrested-After-Teen-Alleges/NipvftZvf0qesUU2W9khtQ.cspx

BROWNSVILLE - Police have arrested Porter High School Assistant Principal James Camden McKinney after a teen claimed he offered her money for sex.

A 15 year old girl told police 48 year old McKinney sent her text messages offering money for sex.

Phone records show text messages from McKinney's phone to the teen, police say they were sexual in nature and started on October 16th.

McKinney was put on Administrative leave with pay on October 20th.

He's free on bond tonight.

TX: 7 yr old boy bruised by paddle at school; taken to emergency room

"I just want the law to say that they can't be beating on my baby."

By TRENT JACOBS
The Daily Sentinel

Saturday, November 14, 2009

http://www.dailysentinel.com/hp/content/news/stories/2009/11/14/augustine_paddling_111409.html?imw=Y

A San Augustine woman said she is concerned about the paddling of her 7-year-old son at his elementary school that left him with bruises on his buttocks and tailbone so severe she had to take him to the local emergency room.

Lynita Lamar told The Daily Sentinel that on Friday, Nov. 6, the principal of the San Augustine Elementary School paddled her second grader three times for having a calculator in his possession that another child had allegedly taken the previous day from the high school campus. Lamar alleges that the paddle used is one inch thick, wrapped in surgical tape and has electric lights on it that are plugged into a wall socket and meant to "intimidate children."

Lamar said she was not notified by school officials that her son had received corporal punishment, and she only discovered the paddle marks when she gave the boy his nightly bath. In previous years, Lamar said the school sent home letters allowing parents to opt out of the practice of corporal punishment. But this year, the school district did not send those letters home, she said.

Now she said she wants the school's policy reversed.

"If he had done something wrong, I think they should have contacted me, and we could have gone from there," Lamar said. "But I don't believe they have the right to whip your child so extremely that it leaves bruises on him for a week and bruises his tailbone, too.

"Now I just want to do whatever I can to change the law," she said, adding that she wanted the school board to implement a 'no-hands-on' policy, especially for the younger students. "I don't believe any 6, 7 or 8-year-old should be coming home black and blue like that."

Lamar said she will take her fight to the governor's office if she has too, and she is looking into contacting advocacy groups that oppose corporal punishment and might provide her with legal counsel to assist her in obtaining reimbursement for her hospital bill.

According to the Texas Education Agency, which does not track corporal punishment statistics, during the last legislative session, two bills that would have mandated parent consent on corporal punishment never passed. So as it stands, current state law allows for teachers and principals to issue corporal punishment as they see fit, as long as it does not cause death. And employees of public school districts are immune from prosecution for corporal punishment as long as it is not deemed "excessive" or results in bodily injury, which is exactly what Lamar says happened in her son's case.

Photographs of her son Lamar said were taken the day after the paddling show numerous black, blue and purple bruises across the child's buttocks. After taking the boy to the emergency room the next day, doctors prescribed regular Tylenol for the pain, which she said prevented the boy from resting on his backside all weekend, and a heating pad to reduce the swelling.

San Augustine ISD Superintendant Walter Key said that it was never the intention of the principal to cause any injury to the child. He said that in this case, corporal punishment was appropriate for the student's infraction, which he said he could not elaborate on because of privacy issues.

"Spanking is never meant to harm or cause injury to a child," Key said. "That's not what spanking is for, nor is any other punishment.

"The bruising I saw in the photos — I certainly didn't see the child before the bruising — but it appears the paddling did cause the bruising, but that's not what it was for," he said.

Key added that without knowing the child's medical history, it was impossible to say whether or not the same paddling would have caused similar injuries to another child.

"Some children can call fall, and they're going to bruise badly, and there's some that won't bruise whatsoever," he said.

Addressing one of Lamar's main concerns that the elementary school no longer gave parents the option of exempting their child from corporal punishment, Key said that policy was recently revised by the school board.

"The district allows for corporal punishment if that is the best form of punishment that fits the nature of the offense," Key said. "In years past, the elementary campus allowed the parents to give permission, or not, for corporal punishment. The school board found out about that and made it very clear that to the elementary school and all campuses, that was not allowable ... that if corporal punishment was the best punishment that fit the offense, than that's what had to happen."

Lamar said while she does not totally object to the idea of corporal punishment being used in schools, she is adamant that parents have the right to know whether or not their child is being physically punished and the right to not allow it to be used on their child if they wish.

"I just want the law to say that they can't be beating on my baby," she said. "I'm scared because I don't know if it will happen again. They're telling me it can without me even knowing about it. That's why I want this changed."

Texas is one of 20 states that still allow corporal punishment in schools and has historically utilized the disciplinary technique more than any other state partly due to the state's large student population.

TX: Lubbock State School worker turns himself in

09:15 AM CST on Saturday, November 7, 2009
The Associated Press
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-stateschool_07met.ART.State.Edition1.4badeb0.html

LUBBOCK – The fired Lubbock State School worker accused in the death of a resident has turned himself in.

Thirty-eight-year-old Doneil Smith was indicted on a manslaughter charge last month.

He remains in Lubbock County Jail with bail set at $50,000.

A woman at the office of his attorney, Frederick Stangl, said Stangl was unavailable to comment Friday.

A coroner ruled that the death in June of Michael Nicholson, 45, was caused by suffocation during a struggle.

The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reports that agency documents indicate Smith allegedly restrained Nicholson by sitting on him.

Six state school workers, including Smith, were fired after the incident. Laura Albrecht, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services, says the firings were tied to the "physical abuse and neglect" of a resident.

The school is now called the Lubbock State Supported Living Center.

TX: Student restraints - How Texas school districts compare

Texas school districts vary widely in how often they physically restrain students with disabilities – despite a shared state policy on when to use them. Use this interactive graphic to see how school districts (and some charter schools) compared during the 2007-08 school year, the most recent statewide data available.

An explanation on why these rates differ follows the graphic.

http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2009/nov/04/student-restraints-how-texas-school-districts-compare/

TX: Disabled students restrained, injured in public schools

From The Texas Tribune

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2009/nov/02/disabled-students-restrained-public-schools/

AUSTIN – Texas educators forcibly pinned down students with disabilities more than 18,000 times in the last school year, sometimes injuring them in the process.

A Texas Tribune review of state data shows public school educators used so-called “physical restraints” – a tool to control or discipline students with disabilities – roughly 100 times a day during the 2007-08 school year.

That year, school staff restrained four of every 100 special education students, with some students being restrained dozens of times. More than 40 percent of restrained youth suffered from emotional problems like post-traumatic stress disorder; nearly 20 percent were autistic.

Educators say restraints are sometimes the only way to prevent disasters. They point to the September 2009 case of a 16-year-old Tyler special education student who fatally stabbed his music teacher in a classroom.

But disability rights advocates say the numbers point to a crisis in Texas special education. They say teachers are resorting to physical restraints because they aren’t properly trained to manage their students’ disabilities – posing a threat to vulnerable children and to themselves.

Their concerns were echoed in Washington this spring, where a federal agency exposed thousands of restraints – including several deaths – of special education students in schools nationwide. In many cases, the U.S. Government Accountability Office found restraints were performed on children who weren’t physically aggressive, and by teachers who weren’t trained to use them.

“It’s a dangerous intervention, both for students and for staff,” said Steve Elliot, an attorney for Advocacy Inc., the state’s federally funded abuse watchdog group. “We’ve had students die in Texas because of restraints, and staff members report injuries. There are less intrusive ways to intervene when inappropriate behavior arises.”

Educators say restraints are only used as a last resort, when all other methods to intervene have failed. When properly used, they immobilize students who are a physical danger to themselves or their classmates without injuring them.

But even with proper training, they’re risky. Restraints can easily lead to scrapes, bruises and broken bones, and too much chest pressure can block air to the lungs.

Between 2002 and 2004, a profoundly disabled teenager was restrained 40 times at her Kemp, Texas high school; in one incident, her family says, educators broke a $100,000 device surgically implanted in the girl to prevent seizures.

In 2004, an emotionally disturbed boy trying to leave the classroom for lunch died of suffocation after his Killeen teacher sat on him to restrain him.

The Texas school districts with the highest restraint rates say there’s no crisis: Some say they’ve been over-reporting the numbers; others say they have tougher special education populations than their peers. But many say they’ve been working in the last year to improve training and provide teachers with alternative strategies, and that their restraint numbers are dropping steadily.

“Our numbers were very high,” acknowledged Austin ISD special education director Janna Lilly. The district saw its restraints drop from 1,007 to 790 in the last two years after it hired a full-time student aggression specialist and started focusing on “positive behavior supports” -- techniques to calm students without getting physical.

“We’re not out of the woods,” Lilly said, “but our numbers are now lower than other districts with fewer special education students.”

Officials with the Texas Education Agency say they started collecting special education restraint data and training teachers in restraint alternatives in 2004, after the Killeen boy’s restraint death. School districts are not required to track restraints of students in the general education population.

“There wouldn’t have been all of this work done if this wasn’t a concern,” said Kathy Clayton, the state director of special education. “There’s a heightened awareness now.”

But she said there’s no way to tell if Texas’ numbers are low or high. Only three other states record restraint data, and they don’t record it the same way Texas does. And she said even Texas’ numbers may be exaggerated because of inconsistencies in the way districts have reported restraints. The state doesn’t keep data on restraint-related injuries.

“It makes it very difficult to be able to look at any trends,” she said.

Advocates for people with disabilities say the comparison isn't that tough to make.

California – which has 2 million more public school students than Texas – reported about 14,000 instances of restraint, seclusion, or other emergency interventions during the 2007-08 school year. Texas had 18,000 instances of restraint alone.

Texas’ numbers could also be low. They’re self-reported by the school districts, the advocates say, and don’t account for the many restraints performed by on-campus peace officers and other school district police, who aren’t required to report to the state.

“Because they don’t have to report it, school districts will often call in a police officer to make a restraint, instead of having the teacher do it,” said Deborah Fowler, an attorney with the legal advocacy group Texas Appleseed.

TX: Man Accused Of Stabbing Baby Investigated For Sex With Student

October 23, 2009

by Jamie Mock

http://www.fortbendnow.com/2009/10/23/41674

Anthony Gilbert, the 37-year-old Sugar Land resident accused of stabbing a week-old baby, has also been accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old Terry High School student. Gilbert is a teacher at the school.

Following an investigation by the Rosenberg Police Department, a warrant was issued for Gilbert this week for sexual assault of a child, with a bond set at $100,000.

Gilbert was involved in a standoff with Sugar Land SWAT officers earlier today. Police were called around 9 a.m. when a woman came to Sugar Land Methodist with a week-old baby with stab wounds to the neck and chest. She told police her husband, Gilbert, held her and the baby hostage overnight in their apartment in the 15700 block of Lexington.

The baby was flown by Life Flight to Memorial Hermann Hospital where he was last reported in critical but stable condition.

SWAT units went to the apartment, and were unable to get Gilbert to come to the door. A stand-off ensued, which was ended shortly after noon when police entered the apartment after throwing gas canisters inside. Police say Gilbert was found with life-threatening self-inflicted stab wounds, and was taken by Life Flight to Memorial Hermann Hospital in critical condition.