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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowA mother is suing the Metropolitan School District of Pike Township and Pike Township Bus Transportation after one of the school system’s drivers was sentenced for choking her son on a school bus.
The lawsuit was filed last week by Ashlee Bear in Marion Superior Court. It alleges that on Feb. 1, 2023, Bear’s son, who has special needs, noticed an unexpected change in the bus route and began worrying his own stop would be skipped and he wouldn’t make it home.
When the child asked about the change, bus driver Leslie Sea allegedly would not answer his questions or explain what was happening.
The boy tried to get off the bus at a stop near his house but Sea put her hands on the student and restrained him from leaving, the lawsuit says.
The confrontation allegedly escalated with Sea shoving the boy into his seat and putting her hands around his neck. The lawsuit alleges Sea squeezed and throttled the boy’s neck, to the point where other students on the bus pulled the driver off in fear for the boy’s safety.
In February, Sea pleaded guilty to strangulation in connection with the incident and was sentenced, court records show.
Bear is suing the district and transportation department for negligence for hiring an unfit employee. The lawsuit says Sea did not have the proper training to serve children with special needs and was not properly vetted before being hired.
Bear’s lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages and says her son suffered physical, emotional and psychological harm.
The school district did not immediately respond to IL’s request for comment.
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