Cooper Fleishman reports on the video of a special needs child being burned, screamed at and beaten up on a school bus, and wonders what could have been done to prevent such horrifying abuse.
Originally appeared at HyperVocal
This horrific security video shows two high schoolers ganging up on Cequan Haskins, a 10-year-old with special needs, in a nearly empty school bus. The bullies hold down Haskins, scream racial slurs at him and finally burn him with a cigarette lighter. No one is there to help him; the bus driver, Nancy Davis, tells them to quiet down, but she never intervenes.
Davis was acquitted of child neglect several months ago. The two attackers were found guilty of disorderly conduct, assault and battery.
Cequan’s mother, Roxanne Haskins, held a press conference in Virginia and released the video to the public to hold the bullies accountable and show the nation what schoolchildren go through — and how often their experiences get unreported or ignored.
Who should be held accountable here? Should the driver have gotten off so easily? And what can be done to ensure this never happens again?