(This story was updated on Monday, July 31, to include a statement from the Ann Arbor School Board president.)
ANN ARBOR, MI - A parent is alleging in a lawsuit that her autistic son was physically and verbally abused by an Ann Arbor Public Schools bus aide, and the district did not review footage of the incident for five weeks, forcing the child to face his abuser.
The lawsuit was filed July 26 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan by Jamie Nelson-Molnar. She alleges the school district, Carpenter Elementary School Principal Michael Johnson and Durham Transportation sent her child onto the bus where he was assaulted by bus aide Rochanda Jefferson.
The assault was hidden from her, as well as law enforcement and Child Protective Services, the suit alleges.
Nelson-Molnar believes Jefferson targeted her 7-year-old son because of his disability, believing she could “discipline ordinary autistic behaviors out of him,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit alleges that surveillance footage of the abuse was immediately available to AAPS and Durham, but for reasons unknown, the footage was not reviewed for five weeks.
“Defendants ignored and concealed reports of the abuse from other children on the bus based on stereotypes that children with disabilities are ‘bad’ kids who are unreliable and poorly behaved,” attorneys wrote in the lawsuit. “AAPS, Johnson, and Durham placed every single child on the bus in danger each day Jefferson remained on the bus in December and January.”
The lawsuit alleges that Nelson-Molnar, while unaware of the assaults, continued to tell the school that her son was coming home from school highly distressed and that something was wrong.
On Jan. 19, 2022, five weeks after the alleged first assault, the lawsuit states Johnson admitted to Nelson-Molnar that there had been two “incidents” on the bus. The lawsuit states AAPS, Johnson and Durham still resisted disclosing details and simply transferred Jefferson to another bus.
Nelson-Molnar only learned of the physical abuse through a teacher who “broke ranks to tell the truth,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit states that Pittsfield Township Police Detective Kyle Erskine called Nelson-Molnar on March 15, 2022, to inform her that an incident regarding her son was reported to CPS and that assault charges would be referred to the prosecutor’s office, which criminally charged Jefferson with child abuse. On June 28, 2023, Jefferson was found guilty of child abuse in a bench trial, the lawsuit states.
Court records show Jefferson was convicted of fourth-degree assault on June 28 in Washtenaw County’s 14A District Court. A pre-sentencing hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Aug. 10.
AAPS Spokesman Andrew Cluley said the district does not comment on pending litigation.
However, Ann Arbor School Board President Rima Mohammad did issue a statement on behalf of the board.
“The board recently learned of the bus incident that occurred in December 2021 and we are deeply concerned and dismayed,” the statement reads. “Student safety is always our top priority in the AAPS, and we are very sorry to hear about how this incident has impacted the child and the family. As always, we will take all allegations seriously and address them promptly.”
In a statement, Durham Transportation said it took prompt action by removing the former aide on the same day the incident was observed on the video.
“Immediately after, we contacted both our customer and Child Protective Services,” Durham’s statement reads. “The Ann Arbor Public Schools team and our team collaborated closely throughout, and we fully cooperated with local authorities throughout the process.”
Video from the bus on Dec. 14, 2021, shows that during his ride home, the boy moved between different seats and crawled onto the floor while the bus was in motion. He swiped his arm at Jefferson, the lawsuit alleges, with Jefferson audibly responding “I’m gonna hit you back. . . . I whoop kids.”
The boy ran for safety to the back of the bus and sat calmly for several minutes, the lawsuit alleges.
Jefferson proceeded to attempt to restrain the child with a star harness, which the lawsuit alleges violated his individualized education plan with the school district.
While the bus was stopped, the bus driver attempted to help carry the child from a seat in the back to his original seat at the front, where Jefferson had set up the harness, the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit states Jefferson roughly took the boy from the bus driver, carrying the boy by his arms to the front of the bus. When the boy began to scream and tried to get away, Jefferson threw the boy into a STAR harness in the front row as the boy continued to scream for help and flailed his arms.
The lawsuit alleges Jefferson did not know how to operate the harness and only partially restrained him.
Video shows that, with the boy restrained in the harness as he continued to scream, Jefferson hit him forcefully and repeatedly, each time raising her right arm into the air before striking him, the lawsuit alleges.
The next day, on Dec. 15, 2021, multiple Carpenter students told AAPS staff they saw Jefferson hit the boy on the bus, the lawsuit alleges, reporting the incident to at least one teacher and one social worker.
On “or about” the same day, the social worker and/or other AAPS staff gave Johnson written reports about the assault and the interviews with children who witnessed it, the lawsuit states.
A report was filed with Child Protective Services for the incident by an unknown party, on or about Dec. 15, the lawsuit states. No one at AAPS notified Nelson-Molnar that multiple children had separately reported her son had been physically assaulted on the bus, the lawsuit states.
On Dec. 16, the boy’s teacher contacted Johnson about the assault reported by the students, expressing her “sincere concerns” that the bus aide was allowed to continue on the bus with Nelson-Molnar’s son and other children with disabilities, the lawsuit states.
On March 15, 2022, Pittsfield Township Police Detective Kyle Erskine called Nelson-Molnar, informing her that an incident regarding her son was reported to CPS and that assault charges would be referred to the prosecutor’s office. Officer Erskine said he could not disclose to Nelson-Molnar who reported the incident, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit alleges the boy’s constitutional rights to due process, bodily integrity and his numerous rights as a child with a disability were violated. Nelson-Molnar requests that the defendants provide medical treatment, educational intervention, repair their special education policies and pay monetary damages.
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