Five staff members from a suburban Indianapolis school, Brown Elementary School in Brownsburg, have been charged with neglect or failure to report neglect after a special education student, only 7 years old, was instructed to eat his own vomit.
The allegations stem from an incident that occurred in February, wherein Sara Seymour, a 27-year-old life skills teacher at Brown Elementary School, reportedly told the victim that he would have to eat his vomit if he vomited. Julie Taylor, another life skills teacher at the school who is 48 years old, allegedly provided a tray for the child to vomit on.
In addition to the two life skills teachers charged with neglect, three other staff members from Brown Elementary School have been charged with failure to report the incident.
According to legal documents filed against them, five adults are now facing criminal charges for a disturbing incident. They were caught on video forcing an elementary student to eat his own vomit.
The Hendricks County Prosecutor made an announcement on April 26th, revealing that two Life Skills teachers, two Life Skills Instructional Aides, and a Kids Count Behavioral Technician who is contracted by the school, are among those who have been charged.
On April 12th, the Brownsburg police received a report about a student who had been mistreated during lunch. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that at least five adults were involved in the incident. The police then requested a warrant to view the surveillance video of the incident.
As per the police, the video footage shows one of the instructors telling the seven-year-old student that they would have to eat their vomit if they vomit while choking. The child is then given a tray, and unfortunately, they proceed to vomit on it. It’s a disturbing and distressing situation that should never have occurred, and it’s good to see that the authorities are taking action against those responsible.
According to court documents, the video footage reveals another employee handing the child a spoon and instructing them to eat their own vomit. Shockingly, the child can be seen complying and eating some of the vomit off the tray. The police further stated that the child was then forced to clean up the vomit.
The video footage is deeply disturbing and has caused disbelief, shock, anger, and outrage among all those who have seen it. Brownsburg Police Department Captain Jennifer Barrett expressed her shock and disbelief, stating that the family of the child did not want to view the video, which is completely understandable given the nature of the incident.
As soon as the police were contacted, all of the employees involved in the incident, including the contracted worker, were placed on leave and prohibited from having any contact with the students.
“All five of them should understand they were charged to be better stewards of children. We all are, but in this case, they were entrusted with children in this community and at the end of the day, they failed. They failed our children, they failed that child and they failed all of us,” Barrett said.
The Brownsburg Schools released told the parents;
On Monday, April 17, we shared with Brown Elementary families and staff that BCSC had moved forward with termination for two staff members after learning of the mistreatment of a life skills student in their care at lunch. BCSC has been notified that these two staff members will be charged by the Hendricks County Prosecutor. Two other staff members are also being charged for their roles in failing to report the incident. More details are forthcoming from the Brownsburg Police Department (BPD).
As BPD releases more information about this incident, please know that the BCSC family will continue to be steadfast in our commitment to Brownsburg students, their safety, and their well-being. This horrendous action is not in line with the character of staff and teachers at Brownsburg Schools. The shocking actions of a few does not define the care and concern that Brownsburg teachers and staff show every day.
—Brownsburg Schools