*Action Alert* Venice teacher charged with beating students with disabilities

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*Action Alert* The proposed settlement agreement wants to allow this EVIL SADISTIC woman to keep teaching... She should be jailed for assaulting these children with disabilities who could not defend themselves.  See the below note from the parent of one of her victims. Please mail or fax a letter to the education practices committee immediately. She belongs in prison for the rest of her life, or someone should rev up the electric chair for her, a needle is too painless.

http://www.mysuncoast.com/Global/story.asp?S=7910088

Venice teacher charged with beating students

Posted: Feb 22, 2008 09:11 AM

Updated: Feb 22, 2008 07:42 PM

Also on mysuncoast.com

Sarasota School District reacts to child abuse charges

VENICE - Venice Police have charged O'Neill with 4 counts of aggravated child abuse by torturing, punishing or caging.Investigators say they received information from the Division of Children Services in January O'Neill abused four students in her Special Education/Profoundly Handicapped Program at Venice Elementary School.

O'Neill is accused of hitting a student in the head, kicking a student, twisting a child's arm behind his back and allowing a student to bang her head repeatedly.Venice Police detectives say two teacher's aides corroborated the story.  Both women reported they had witnessed O'Neill lash out at the children and maliciously punish them by hitting, kicking and improperly restraining the students. The teacher's aides both said they'd seen several acts of violence toward the children during the school year and they felt the incidents were increasingly dangerous to the health of the children.

One of the victims is 11 years old and confined to a wheel chair.  Half of the child's brain had been removed at the age of 11 months.  Police say O'Neill backhanded the victim in the head and that's what started this investigation. 

One witness said she and O'Neill were friends. The witness reported she was speaking with police because " there were situations that the kids were not being treated correctly. " She said O'Neill had been spoken with about past events, then the activity slowed, " where she wasn't really hurting any of the kids. " The witness stated that O'Neill's improper behavior started again and at that time she and the other witness spoke with the school nurse about the situation in which " [O'Neill] backhanded the victim in the head. "

She stated that on Monday, Jan 28,2008 O'Neill " was feeding the victim who is profoundly handicapped, and she, the victim, picked 'drink' instead of 'food', plus she's blind so she was just pushing a button and she just backhanded her in the head.

The witness stated that they just couldn't take it anymore. " We were afraid someone's going to get severely hurt. " At that time they advised the school nurse who told Principal Baus.Baus began the process of placing O'Neill on paid administrative leave until further investigation and also asked the witnesses for written statements. The next day they provided her with a list of abusive actions O'Neill had taken against the children under her care.

The list was based on a log one of the witness was keeping each day as she saw the abusive acts take place. The second witness observed the same acts, so she did not keep her own log. The list then prompted Principal Baus to call DCF.

The second victim is 8 years old. The victim is diagnosed with Down's Syndrome and a seizure disorder that has developmentally disabled him further.The witnesses reported that O'Neill hit the victim in the head and face with a variety of items to include a three ring binder, display board, empty plastic tennis ball container, her hand, and a water bottle. She has also kicked the victim in the buttocks, slapped him, put him into a harness and yanked him, and has even pulled a rag from his mouth with such force that she removed a tooth. Also, the aides told of an incident when O'Neill was cleaning the victim's mouth with a cloth(due to recurring food regurgitation.)

The witness said, " O'Neill would take her finger and cram it all the way down as far as she could get it... " , on this date the victim " bit down on the wash cloth and she yanked it to where his bottom tooth went flying over her right shoulder. "

The victim's' mother had advised the aides that the tooth wasn't loose at the time. By shoving her hand in the victim's mouth and pulling the rag out so forcefully as to remove a tooth as well, O'Neill was intentionally torturing the child. It was no wrong-doing of his own that he regurgitates his food and therefore not an act to be punished by forcefully cleaning his mouth or removing items from his mouth.

Witnesses said O'Neill would wheel a chair that the third victim was properly restrained in into the corner and leave him where he would then hit his head on the wall. The witness reported that " [O'Neill] thinks it's funny. " O'Neill would say sarcastically 'don't hit your head', but she will allow him to continue hitting his head.

The witness also reported that O'Neill will take the victim into the corner of the cafeteria out of the sight of most and will " twist his fingers while his arm is behind their back to a point where she could hear him cry in pain.

The fourth victim is 7 years old and has been evaluated as being equivalent to an 11-14 month old child reference motor skills. The witness reported that O'Neill had kicked the victim in the legs, hit her in the head with a multitude of objects, pushed her causing her to strike her head on furniture and the floor, and used a " weighted blanket " on her causing the child great mental pain.

The witness reported numerous incidents of the victim being struck with her hand, a binder, an arm brace, a water bottle and other objects. Both witnesses told of an incident in which O'Neill instructed the victim to get out of her chair. The child did so, and then, as stated in a written statement by the witness, O'Neill " gave her a good push...causing the victim to trip over her chair and fall very hard onto the floor, hitting her head. "

In a verbal statement the witness stated that she heard the victim's head hit the floor and that the child had cried as a result of the injury, though she rarely cries. The victim was taken to the nurse's office. On a student incident report dated Octomber 12, 2007 it simply notes that the student, " tripped on chair leg-fell backwards on floor " and does not mention the child was pushed by O'Neill just prior, causing the victim to trip on the chair.

The School Nurse later advised that she had filled out the report as the incident was relayed to her by O'Neill. The fact that she was pushed by O'Neill was not related to the school nurse.O'Neill turned herself in to the Venice Police Department Thursday.  She was released from custody Friday evening.

Venice police say the Administration and staff at Venice Elementary School as well as Sarasota School District Police Chief Lawrence Leon were fully cooperative and assisted in this case.The names of the victims and their families have not been released to protect their identities.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Several readers have asked what can be done about school abuse. Aside from supporting fed legislation, it may take a case by case uproar from the public. A parent of one of the disabled child victims of Sarasota teacher O'Neill has asked that people write to the Education Practices Committee to express feelings about the settlement (two years probation but allowed to teach, $500 fine, $150 per school year to defray monitoring costs, college course on SpEd, " restricted " to having " no primary responsibility for nonverbal students " but allowed to work with her favorite victims all the same, etc.) of the O'Neill abuse case. In comments below, please read this parent's message, instructions and contact information for Education Practices Committee.

Victim's parent message: Please help me by letting the Education Practices Commission know how you feel about the Settlement Agreement (contact info below)they will be voting on this Sept 16, 2010. [settlement agreement on PDF]. Please note that, if approved, Ms. O'Neill will be allowed back into a teaching position within Sarasota County Schools.

I know this is short notice, but if you would please write a personal note to the Education Practices Commission prior to their hearing Ms. O'Neill's case on Sept. 16 I would greatly appreciate it. In addition, please pass this email along to any friends, family, advocates that might be interested in having their voice be heard.

[for information on case, Google " O'Neill + Sarasota + abuse " and go to Florida Families Against Restraint and Seclusion for archived articles: http://familiesagainstrestraintandseclusion.blogspot.com/]

Thank you to everyone! ...Please Write or Fax ASAP (before Sept 10th, if possible) and be sure to include the Case: O'Neill (Sarasota County) in your letter.Post Office, UPS, Fed Ex: Education Practices Commission

Florida Department of Education 325 West Gaines StreetTallahassee , FL 32399Attn: Kathleen sBy Fax:Fax Number: 1-Attn: Kathleen sCase: O’Neill,

- Regina