Boy, 15, accused of horrific crimes against non-verbal 7-year-old on school bus
A 15-year-old Indiana teen has been formally accused of raping a 7-year-old non-verbal second grade student while the two were on the school bus.
The family of the Jennings County second grader has since announced plans to sue Jennings County School Corporation claiming their young son was raped repeatedly by an older student while riding on the school bus.
The harrowing alleged incident happened on April 16 on a bus designated for students with special needs, the Jennings County Juvenile Probation Department confirmed.
'The victim is a non-verbal special education student who was improperly seated directly next to a much older 15-year-old student and was helplessly left unmonitored by two school employees who were on the bus and charged with caring for his safety,' Laura Swafford, an attorney for the second grade student's family, said.
The alleged assaults were recorded by at least one camera inside the school bus, according to court documents.
'Video camera footage later downloaded from inside the bus shows that, on multiple occasions, the victim was sexually assaulted and raped, but neither the Corporation's bus driver nor the extra bus monitor employee did anything to stop the assaults,' Swafford added.
Now, the Jennings County School Corporation is undergoing an extensive review of security footage, from the entire school year, to learn whether there have been additional, unreported incidents.
The alleged incident happened on April 16 on a bus designated for students with special needs, the Jennings County Juvenile Probation Department confirmed. Pictured: Sand Creek Elementary School, one of six elementary schools within the school corporation
Both the victim and the alleged rapist are juveniles and have not been publicly identified.
On Tuesday, the 15-year-old alleged rapist appeared at the Jennings County Circuit Court for a hearing that was closed to the public, WTHR13 reported.
Days earlier, on April 25, the Jennings County School Corporation released a statement, claiming the school corporation is now 'increasing safety protocols.'
North Vernon, where the approximately 3,800 student school corporation is located, is roughly 70 miles southeast of Indianapolis.
'This nightmare tragedy should never have happened,' Swafford said.
The Indianapolis-based attorney went on to raise questions as to the awareness of the school's staff and their 'ability to protect their young.'
'How could both the bus driver and the additional bus monitor-aid not notice anything? Like all parents in the community, the boy's family believed the school would protect their young, vulnerable son.
The family entrusted the school to protect their son by monitoring activity on the bus. The school system breached this trust and clearly failed in its responsibility,' the lawyer added.
Swafford has since filed a tort claim - the legal first step to filing a lawsuit against the North Vernon school corporation.
'The tort claim alleges that the Jennings County School Corporation was grossly negligent, violated the child's civil rights, and caused him permanent injuries and damages,' Swafford said.
'The victim's family is hoping that this claim and its publicity will help prevent such a tragedy from happening to another child while sending a powerful message that all schools should be held accountable for the safety and protection of their students, particularly the most vulnerable disabled children.'
On Tuesday, the district Superintendent Nicole Johnson released a statement addressing the alleged incident.
'We are aware of the legal filing connected to very concerning incidents that allegedly occurred on one of our special transportation buses, and we will respond to this filing through the appropriate legal channels.
We cannot go into any detail about this situation because we are cooperating with an active police investigation and additionally are involved in this litigation.
I want to emphasize, though, that these reports involving students' safety have been heartbreaking and devastating to all of us. Nothing is more important than the safety of our students. While this incident must still be investigated and resolved through our criminal justice system, we are taking steps to try to better ensure the safety of our students,' Johnson's statement concluded.
The North Vernon Police Department confirmed that the 15-year-old suspect is being held in a juvenile detention center.
He has reportedly been charged with one count of rape.
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