A South Florida mom says her autistic daughter is being prosecuted over an incident at school. Why this case is going to court instead of...
A South Florida mom says her autistic daughter is being prosecuted over an incident at school. Why this case is going to court instead of being handled by school officials, here’s 7’s Heather Walker.
Esther King worries every day when she sends her daughter Halle off to school.
Esther King: “Halle needs to be supervised at all times.”
Although she is [21-years-old], Halle is autistic and attends American Senior High in Hialeah, which has a special program for students like her.
Esther King: “She tends to get a little agitated. It’s like, inside, she knows what she wants to say, but she can’t find a way to say it.”
Back in November, Esther got a call that no parent of an autistic child wants to receive.
Esther King: “They explained to me that she had an altercation where she hit a teacher in the back, and she kicked her, and that she was suspended from school.”
What lead to the altercation is unclear, Halle told her that a teacher’s aide took her phone.
Esther King: “And deleted a picture of her friend and she was upset because of that.”
Halle served a suspension and was allowed to return to school. Esther thought everything had been resolved.
Esther King: “There weren’t any charges filed with the police because of her mental mentality.”
But then, she was served with an official notice from the clerk of courts, charging Halle with battery.
Esther King: “How could they arrest a kid that doesn’t even know what a summons is? That doesn’t even know the severity of what she did.”
State records show the teacher’s aide, Marie St. Hilaire, filed a complaint with the state attorney’s office.
Miami-Dade Schools Police officer Daniel Escalante also provided a formal sworn statement.
Esther doesn’t understand why it escalated after she had met with school officials and Halle was already back at school
Esther King: “I wouldn’t imagine in a million years that this will happen to my daughter or any kid with autism.”
7Investigates has requested the teacher’s aid statement and police report from the school district to find out why Halle was charged.
Her mom says Halle isn’t even capable of defending herself against the charges.
Esther King: “Arresting a kid, with a mentality of, I know she is [21-years-old] of a 7-year-old. Arrest shouldn’t be an option. Jail shouldn’t be a option.”
We asked Halle if she knew what a summons was:
Halle King: “Uh… Going to the principal.”
In an April 9 court hearing, the judge also questioned Halle’s competency to participate in the trial.
Judge Mariano Corcilli: “So normally we have a procedure called, we call it ITP, which is Incompetent To Proceed. Which are for folks that don’t have the required mental capacity to move forward.”
For now the case is ongoing.
The state attorney’s office would not comment on the open case, but a spokesman says in general: “Every case filed in criminal court is unique with it’s own specific set of circumstances.”
But disability experts question whether the criminal court system is the only option in this case.
Caitlin Cliven: “Is it to change their behavior, make sure they don’t do this again, teach them a lesson? If so, I doubt that the criminal justice system is the proper system to address that with this individual.”
For Esther, the bigger question is what happens down the road.
Esther King “She has a case number, so whether they expunge it, whether she beats it, whatever the case may be. A 21-year-old kid with autism has an arrest history.”
She is hoping what happens in court will not define her daughter’s future.
Heather Walker 7News.
CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
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954-921-CLUE
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