Printed on page A1
Concern about teacher not new
Complaints of abuse date back to 2005
By Tiffany Lankes
Published: Tuesday, August 12, 2008 at 1:00 a.m.
Staff members at Venice Elementary School say special education teacher Diana O'Neill called her students "retards" and hit them on the head when they answered questions incorrectly.
In 2005, two co-workers said she pulled a child's hand out of his mouth so hard she left a mark on his chin. That same year, another teacher said an aide saw O'Neill hold a child's nose and mouth shut while trying to feed her.
An investigative report released Monday by the school district details instances dating back to 2005 involving O'Neill, who has been charged with four counts of child abuse on her students.
But before this year, concerns about O'Neill never triggered a formal investigation or call to the state abuse hot line, where school employees are legally required to report abuse suspicions. The school's principal, Theresa Baus, warned O'Neill to watch her behavior, and passed complaints about the teacher on to district officials who left it up to Baus to handle.
Some teachers who suspected abuse and reported it to Baus were reprimanded for spreading gossip. And O'Neill stayed in the classroom, responsible for the well-being of a handful of the most vulnerable students in the district.
The teacher was arrested in February, after two classroom aides came forward with a log in which they documented more than a dozen instances when they say O'Neill hit, kicked and slapped students in her class.
Parents say they cannot fathom why action was not taken sooner.
"If a teacher is abusing kids, or is even suspected of abusing kids, you'd think they would report it," said Randi Munsell, whose son is one of the students O'Neill allegedly abused. "Maybe it would never have got to where it got with our kids."
The district's investigation was done by a private investigator hired to look into the most recent allegations against O'Neill and determine whether she can still work for the district.
O'Neill, who has taught special education at Venice elementary for 18 years, has pleaded not guilty to the charges and has been on administrative leave since her arrest.
School district spokesman Gary Leatherman said the district handled complaints about O'Neill appropriately. There was little evidence in the earlier cases to prove O'Neill physically harmed students, and none of the students in her class were injured.
"I don't know that anyone would have seen the previous reports as indicative of a pattern," Leatherman said. "Now, there's going to be a different perspective."
O'Neill's attorneys say that the aides mistook appropriate techniques for abuse.
They also point out that O'Neill is not accused of injuring any of the children. The attorneys say they have talked to former parents and students who speak highly of O'Neill's teaching abilities.
"There were numerous interviews with school employees and nurses who were in the classroom and never saw anything," said Peter Collins, one of O'Neill's attorneys.
According to the private investigator' s report, Baus said that O'Neill's aides may not have come forward sooner with their complaints about the teacher because they were afraid of the union.
"Diana is a senior union representative," Baus told investigators, the report says. "They were probably a little afraid of Diana, afraid of losing their jobs."
Pat Gardner, president of the Sarasota Classified/Teachers Association says she doubts the employees feared the union.
"I don't know why they would think that," Gardner said. "As far as we are concerned, that is ridiculous."
The union was paying O'Neill's defense attorneys after she was arrested. Gardner would not say whether the union continues to pay O'Neill's legal bills.
The first event in the private investigator' s report happened in February 2005, when another special education teacher and an aide told Baus that O'Neill yanked a child's hand out of his mouth so hard that it left a mark on his chin.
Baus told investigators that she contacted John Zoretich, the district's director of elementary schools, who told her to check the student for marks. Baus did not see any, so she warned O'Neill to watch her behavior and started spending more time observing her classroom.
The following school year, two different staff members went to Baus and reported that one of her aides had seen O'Neill forcefully feed a student, holding the child's mouth and nose shut in the process. Another time she made a boy stand behind his chair until he fell down, the staff members reported.
Baus told the investigator that she went and talked to the aide, who said she did not know anything. Baus reprimanded the two staff members for spreading gossip.
The principal fielded another complaint about O'Neill in October 2007 when the school nurse came to her with concerns about two students in O'Neill's class who had bruises and scratch marks on them.
Again, Baus contacted Zoretich and special education coordinator Kathy Devlin.
And again, Baus met with O'Neill and warned her that no one should be hurt in her classroom. O'Neill said some of the marks were caused by a belt she was using to help one of the children stand.
At that time, the principal also talked to O'Neill about whether she was feeling burnt out from the intensity of the job. O'Neill told her she would think about it, the report stated.
"In my mind, if she was rough, it wasn't intentional," Baus told investigators. "Because it didn't continue, I didn't think anything more of it."
After the October situation, the two aides in O'Neill's class started keeping a detailed log of instances when they thought the teacher was too rough with her students.
It was not until January 29, when O'Neill allegedly struck a student in the head, that the aides came forward to a school nurse, who went to Baus about it.
That is when Baus called the abuse hot line and reported O'Neill.
Baus told investigators that she did not question the aides about why they did not come to her sooner, but thought that it was because the abuse was not constant.
"The other thing they told me, as an example, on December 3, she smacked a kid in the head, well that may take three seconds out of a day that is 405 minutes long; the rest of the day may have been great ... and then you may have two or three days when nothing happens at all ...
"So it wasn't like it was a nonstop, constant abuse that was occurring every day," Baus said.
This story appeared in print on page A1
Showing posts with label Venice Elementary. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Venice Elementary. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Police Say Florida Teacher Abused Students
Staff Report
Published Friday, Feb. 22, 2008
VENICE, FL — A Venice Elementary School teacher is under arrest this morning, charged with the abuse of mentally handicapped students in her classroom. Venice police say Diana Z. O'Neill hit students on more than one occasion, kicked a child and twisted a child's arm behind his back. Two teacher aides in O'Neill's classroom came forward because they were concerned that the students were in danger, according to police. One of the aides gave school officials a written log of the incidents of alleged abuse.Police documents list four of the five students in O'Neill's classroom as victims in the case. The school district placed O'Neill on administrative leave last week. She turned herself in at the Venice Police Department on Thursday. She's charged with four counts of aggravated child abuse. Police reports say that O’Neill routinely hurt four of the students in her class.
Girl, 7, punished with "body sock"
Parents of a 7-year-old girl, who has the motor skills of an 11- to 14-month-old child, say the teacher’s physical abuse caused their daughter to lose enthusiasm. She had trouble sleeping and became quick-tempered, police reports state.
Aides reported O’Neill had kicked the girl in the legs, hit her in the head with objects, pushed her to the floor and used a “weighted blanket” and a “body sock” — two therapy tools that restrict movement — to punish her.
The aides told police that O’Neill told the girl to get out of a chair on Oct. 12 and gave her “a good push,” causing the girl to trip and hit her head on the floor so hard she started to cry, although she rarely cries.
The girl went to the school nurse, who filled out an incident report based on what O’Neill told her — that the girl “tripped on chair leg — fell backwards on floor,” police records state.
The aides told police O’Neill struck the girl numerous times in December, including three times with a board and with her hand on Dec. 5; with her hand, an arm brace and twice with a binder on Dec. 12; with an arm brace on Dec. 17; and with a water bottle on Jan. 14.
When O’Neill pushed the girl on Jan. 18, she hit her head on a metal door frame and caused a lump, but O’Neill reported the girl “fell into a wall” and had “zero sign of head injury, applied ice,” police said.
A week later, O’Neill got out a blue weighted blanket and wrapped up the girl from head to toe with her hands at her side, and then let her go, one aide told police.
The girl lost her balance and hit her head as she fell to the floor, police reported. As she tried to free herself, she hit the base of a swing, and O’Neill chuckled, the aide told police.
O’Neill also used the body sock to cover the girl, pinning her arms to her sides, then gave her a little push, and the girl fell into a shelf and hit her head, the aide told police.
The girl’s parents told police that since O’Neill was removed from the classroom, the girl has been happier, more verbal, more social, a better sleeper and less aggressive when agitated.
Autistic boy allowed to hit head on wall
A boy in O’Neill’s class who is diagnosed with autism, seizure disorder and developmental delay, has the abilities of a 15- to 24-month-old child, police reports said. His mother says the boy does not know right from wrong in most cases, and has little understanding of consequences.
Aides told police that O’Neill would wheel his chair into the corner when the boy acted up at lunch, leaving him there. The boy would respond by hitting his head on the wall and O’Neill would say sarcastically, “don’t hit your head,” but allowed him to continue.
Once in the corner of the cafeteria, out of sight of most people, O’Neill would also twist his arm behind him or twist fingers until he cried out in pain, the aides said.
There is a chair the boy can be restrained in as an alternative way to control him, the aides said.
The boy has his own nurse with him at all times because of a seizure disorder, but O’Neill would not allow the nurse in the classroom because she said he is a distraction to learning, the aides said.
Girl backhanded in head, reports say
An 11-year-old girl who is in a wheelchair, who had half of her brain removed when she was 11 months old, still has a soft spot in her head where the sections of the skull do not meet. She is also prone to seizures.
O’Neill backhanded the girl in the head, fed her in a rough manner that caused the girl’s lip to bleed and degraded her in front of others, according to police reports.
An aide told police that O’Neill was feeding the girl on Jan. 28 and backhanded her in the head when the girl did not follow prompts to choose between a bite of food or a sip of her drink.The aide said O’Neill would ram the spoon in the girl’s mouth during meals so hard that her gums bled.
Boy, 8, came home with bruises
An 8-year-old boy in O’Neill’s class has Down syndrome and a seizure disorder. His mother told police he has come home from school with bruises on the back of his thighs.
The aides told police O’Neill has hit him in the head with a variety of objects, kicked him in the buttocks, slapped him and pulled a rag from his mouth so hard that it removed a tooth.
O’Neill also used a gait belt as a leash that left bruises and scratches on the boy’s back and neck.The boy just learned to walk and gets tired, and one day O’Neill placed a cloth belt across his chest and under his arms when he sat down on the floor to rest, the aides told police.
O’Neill used the belt to yank the boy to his feet several times, telling him, “You’re going to stand,” aides told police.
Another time, the boy bit down on a wash cloth O’Neill was using to clean out his mouth and she yanked it out so hard that a bottom tooth went flying over her right shoulder, the aides told police.
Last modified: Friday, Feb. 22, 2008 at 2:51 p.m.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20080222/BREAKING/338604838/-1/news
Published Friday, Feb. 22, 2008
VENICE, FL — A Venice Elementary School teacher is under arrest this morning, charged with the abuse of mentally handicapped students in her classroom. Venice police say Diana Z. O'Neill hit students on more than one occasion, kicked a child and twisted a child's arm behind his back. Two teacher aides in O'Neill's classroom came forward because they were concerned that the students were in danger, according to police. One of the aides gave school officials a written log of the incidents of alleged abuse.Police documents list four of the five students in O'Neill's classroom as victims in the case. The school district placed O'Neill on administrative leave last week. She turned herself in at the Venice Police Department on Thursday. She's charged with four counts of aggravated child abuse. Police reports say that O’Neill routinely hurt four of the students in her class.
Girl, 7, punished with "body sock"
Parents of a 7-year-old girl, who has the motor skills of an 11- to 14-month-old child, say the teacher’s physical abuse caused their daughter to lose enthusiasm. She had trouble sleeping and became quick-tempered, police reports state.
Aides reported O’Neill had kicked the girl in the legs, hit her in the head with objects, pushed her to the floor and used a “weighted blanket” and a “body sock” — two therapy tools that restrict movement — to punish her.
The aides told police that O’Neill told the girl to get out of a chair on Oct. 12 and gave her “a good push,” causing the girl to trip and hit her head on the floor so hard she started to cry, although she rarely cries.
The girl went to the school nurse, who filled out an incident report based on what O’Neill told her — that the girl “tripped on chair leg — fell backwards on floor,” police records state.
The aides told police O’Neill struck the girl numerous times in December, including three times with a board and with her hand on Dec. 5; with her hand, an arm brace and twice with a binder on Dec. 12; with an arm brace on Dec. 17; and with a water bottle on Jan. 14.
When O’Neill pushed the girl on Jan. 18, she hit her head on a metal door frame and caused a lump, but O’Neill reported the girl “fell into a wall” and had “zero sign of head injury, applied ice,” police said.
A week later, O’Neill got out a blue weighted blanket and wrapped up the girl from head to toe with her hands at her side, and then let her go, one aide told police.
The girl lost her balance and hit her head as she fell to the floor, police reported. As she tried to free herself, she hit the base of a swing, and O’Neill chuckled, the aide told police.
O’Neill also used the body sock to cover the girl, pinning her arms to her sides, then gave her a little push, and the girl fell into a shelf and hit her head, the aide told police.
The girl’s parents told police that since O’Neill was removed from the classroom, the girl has been happier, more verbal, more social, a better sleeper and less aggressive when agitated.
Autistic boy allowed to hit head on wall
A boy in O’Neill’s class who is diagnosed with autism, seizure disorder and developmental delay, has the abilities of a 15- to 24-month-old child, police reports said. His mother says the boy does not know right from wrong in most cases, and has little understanding of consequences.
Aides told police that O’Neill would wheel his chair into the corner when the boy acted up at lunch, leaving him there. The boy would respond by hitting his head on the wall and O’Neill would say sarcastically, “don’t hit your head,” but allowed him to continue.
Once in the corner of the cafeteria, out of sight of most people, O’Neill would also twist his arm behind him or twist fingers until he cried out in pain, the aides said.
There is a chair the boy can be restrained in as an alternative way to control him, the aides said.
The boy has his own nurse with him at all times because of a seizure disorder, but O’Neill would not allow the nurse in the classroom because she said he is a distraction to learning, the aides said.
Girl backhanded in head, reports say
An 11-year-old girl who is in a wheelchair, who had half of her brain removed when she was 11 months old, still has a soft spot in her head where the sections of the skull do not meet. She is also prone to seizures.
O’Neill backhanded the girl in the head, fed her in a rough manner that caused the girl’s lip to bleed and degraded her in front of others, according to police reports.
An aide told police that O’Neill was feeding the girl on Jan. 28 and backhanded her in the head when the girl did not follow prompts to choose between a bite of food or a sip of her drink.The aide said O’Neill would ram the spoon in the girl’s mouth during meals so hard that her gums bled.
Boy, 8, came home with bruises
An 8-year-old boy in O’Neill’s class has Down syndrome and a seizure disorder. His mother told police he has come home from school with bruises on the back of his thighs.
The aides told police O’Neill has hit him in the head with a variety of objects, kicked him in the buttocks, slapped him and pulled a rag from his mouth so hard that it removed a tooth.
O’Neill also used a gait belt as a leash that left bruises and scratches on the boy’s back and neck.The boy just learned to walk and gets tired, and one day O’Neill placed a cloth belt across his chest and under his arms when he sat down on the floor to rest, the aides told police.
O’Neill used the belt to yank the boy to his feet several times, telling him, “You’re going to stand,” aides told police.
Another time, the boy bit down on a wash cloth O’Neill was using to clean out his mouth and she yanked it out so hard that a bottom tooth went flying over her right shoulder, the aides told police.
Last modified: Friday, Feb. 22, 2008 at 2:51 p.m.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20080222/BREAKING/338604838/-1/news
Sarasota School District reacts to child abuse charges
Updated: Feb 22, 2008 11:35 AM EST
VENICE - Sarasota County School Board releases statement about charges of child abuse at Venice Elementary School:
Venice Elementary School teacher Diana O'Neill surrendered to Venice police Thursday evening in connection with allegations that she may have physically abused students in her class.
Other staff members at the school reported that they had witnessed O'Neill engaging in behavior with students that could be considered abusive. Principal Theresa Baus reported the allegations to the Florida Department of Children and Families in late January. O'Neill was placed on administrative leave immediately, pending further investigation. The Sarasota County School district cooperated fully with the Venice Police and DCF investigations.
The results of the DCF investigation indicated that charges were warranted. A probable cause affidavit was issued Feb. 21 by the Florida State Attorney's office.
Sarasota County Schools Superintendent Gary Norris said the district typically suspends any administrative inquiry during a DCF or police investigation to avoid interfering with those proceedings. Once the police investigation is concluded, the district conducts an investigation to determine if disciplinary action is warranted independent of the resolution of the legal case.
"Action may be necessary to respond to professional misconduct even in cases where an individual is not convicted of a crime," Norris said. "Obviously teachers and other school staff must be held to the highest possible standards in matters of student safety and well-being."
Requests for information about criminal charges against O'Neill are being referred to Captain Tom McNulty of the Venice Police Department
VENICE - Sarasota County School Board releases statement about charges of child abuse at Venice Elementary School:
Venice Elementary School teacher Diana O'Neill surrendered to Venice police Thursday evening in connection with allegations that she may have physically abused students in her class.
Other staff members at the school reported that they had witnessed O'Neill engaging in behavior with students that could be considered abusive. Principal Theresa Baus reported the allegations to the Florida Department of Children and Families in late January. O'Neill was placed on administrative leave immediately, pending further investigation. The Sarasota County School district cooperated fully with the Venice Police and DCF investigations.
The results of the DCF investigation indicated that charges were warranted. A probable cause affidavit was issued Feb. 21 by the Florida State Attorney's office.
Sarasota County Schools Superintendent Gary Norris said the district typically suspends any administrative inquiry during a DCF or police investigation to avoid interfering with those proceedings. Once the police investigation is concluded, the district conducts an investigation to determine if disciplinary action is warranted independent of the resolution of the legal case.
"Action may be necessary to respond to professional misconduct even in cases where an individual is not convicted of a crime," Norris said. "Obviously teachers and other school staff must be held to the highest possible standards in matters of student safety and well-being."
Requests for information about criminal charges against O'Neill are being referred to Captain Tom McNulty of the Venice Police Department
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