Mother sues Beaufort County schools for alleged physical, mental abuse of disabled son

Mary Dimitrov
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The mother of a disabled student at H.E. McCracken Middle School has filed a lawsuit against the Beaufort County School District and a teacher’s assistant, alleging the aide physically and mentally abused her son this school year.

The Bluffton Police Department arrested the teacher’s assistant, Shandequa Moria Jenkins, and she was charged with third-degree misdemeanor assault and battery Feb. 2, court records show.

The incident happened Jan. 10 and was first reported Jan. 12, according to Sgt. Bonifacio Perez at the Bluffton Police Department.

“Since the child is unable to communicate verbally, we do not yet know the full extent and duration of the alleged abuse,” said Robert Metro at Bauer & Metro, the law firm representing the family, in a statement to The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette.

The mother is named in the lawsuit but is not being identified here because it would identify the minor child, who is 14.

Jenkins is no longer a district employee as of Feb. 6, according to spokesperson Candace Bruder.

The lawsuit, filed Feb. 9, says Jenkins left visible bruising and markings on the student.

It alleges the student’s injuries were due to the school system’s negligence in:

  • Hiring and retaining Jenkins who was not fit to care for children

  • Failing to properly train Jenkins

  • Failing to properly monitor activities in special needs classrooms to ensure safe treatment of students

  • Failing to supervise employees adequately, including Jenkins

  • Failing to implement special programs and services in an effort to mitigate lasting physical and emotional harm to the student

  • Failing to prepare and implement a proper Individualized education program prior to and following physical abuse upon the student

It further alleges the teacher’s assistant assaulted and battered the student.

Per policy, the Beaufort County School District does not comment on pending litigation, Bruder said.

Jenkins’ attorney for the criminal charges, John Albert Meyer, declined to comment.

Metro, the lawyer representing the parent and her child, previously represented a Bluffton Elementary School mother and her non-verbal autistic child who was repeatedly abused on a school bus by a school bus monitor. The monitor plead guilty to seven counts of second degree assault and battery in 2017.

“So, to some extent, the county was aware of the danger which made it especially important to hire qualified assistants in this case,” Metro said in a statement.

The plaintiff is seeking actual and punitive damages.

The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette do not typically name those charged with misdemeanors but chose to do in this case because of the lawsuit involving Jenkins’ charges.

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