Three additional families have filed lawsuits against Covington Elementary School and the St Tammany Parish School District alleging their developmentally disabled children were neglected and abused in a special education classroom during the 2017-2018 school year.
So far, the parents of seven children in the class have filed suit, alleging their kids came home with bruises, bite marks and scratches.
When the injuries and concerns were reported to the school’s principal and/or teacher, the parents claim nothing was done. Several of those who filed suit said they also never received mandatory daily reports about their children, that school district policy requires to be sent home when a child is injured.
In fact, one of the latest suits, filed last week by Anna Monus, Kelly and Dana Duke, claims Monus received reports with her forged signature on them when she asked about them at the end of the school year.
All three lawsuits mention recordings taken by parent Kathleen Cannino, whose child was in the class. Her lawsuit says Cannino sewed a recording device into her child’s clothing at least twice during the last school year to give a voice to what was happening inside the classroom.
Like most of the children in the class, Cannino’s child is non-verbal.
The lawsuits allege the teacher and/or aides were captured on the recording using profanity around the children, even mocking them, saying they would like to “break all his fingers off” about one of the boys in the class.
The initial claim filed in June by Simon Trech and Amanda Zapata reads, “The teacher and her assistants fostered a nightmarish classroom culture where verbal and physical abuse of disabled students was allowed and even encouraged."
The teacher, Tammi Cole, could not be reached for comment Friday.
The Monus case documents repeated bite marks, scratches and bruises with photos of her child.
The Dukes allege theirs was denied the special drinks the child needed because the child had failed to thrive and required special nutrition.
A separate lawsuit claimed the teachers and/or aides encouraged one small boy to rub his genitals.
Friday, a seventh parent joined in Cannino’s lawsuit, Mary Wright.
She alleges her child came home with bruises on her arms, back and face, a black eye and a partial, adult-sized handprint on her buttock.
Wright’s lawsuit claims when she complained about her child’s injuries to the school, she was reported to the La. Department of Children and Family Services alleging she was abusing and neglecting her child.
The petition said none of the allegations were validated by DCFS.
The school district declined to comment on the lawsuits because of the pending litigation, but in court documents, their attorney denied the allegations in one of the lawsuits, arguing there was no proof.
The teacher and three aides are no longer employed by the St Tammany Parish School System, but spokeswoman Meredith Mendez would not say whether they resigned or were fired, citing personnel privacy laws.
Covington Police Chief Tim Lentz said Cannino brought her recordings to him to review, and while he found the conversations captured on them inappropriate, he said he did not feel it rose to the level of a crime.