ACLU sues Kenton County deputy sheriff accused of handcuffing disabled children

A deputy sheriff in Kentucky allegedly violated the rights of two children with disabilities by handcuffing them as a means of punishment, according to a federal lawsuit.

Both children have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other problems, as said by the ACLU, and both children were being punished for behavior related to their disabilities.

“These disciplinary practices… feed into the ‘school-to-prison pipeline, ‘ where children are funneled out of public schools and into the criminal justice system”, the ACLU said in a statement. The lawsuit says the girl’s mother witnessed her daughter with her hands in handcuffs above her head, “a pain compliance technique that is unsafe for children”.

The lawsuit also names Kenton County Sheriff Chuck Korzenborn, for alleging his failure to adequately train and supervise Deputy Sumner, a school resource officer at several public elementary schools in Covington. The suit also seeks compensatory and punitive damages.

In the video Sumner tells the boy, “You don’t get to swing at me like that”.

There are better ways to de-escalate conflicts with children that have ADHD and avoid using force, Center said.

Attorney Rickell Howard with the Children’s Resource Center in Covington said the officer went too far. “There are not situations where law enforcement action was necessary”. School Resource Officer Kevin Sumner put the handcuffs around the children’s biceps, locking their arms behind them.

The press release said that they will not comment on the matter, given concerns for privacy of the children, but that the district has and will “fully cooperate with the children’s legal counsel, as well as the Sheriff’s Office, in looking into the complaints”.

Kentucky has had a school resource officer program since 1977.

On the way back from the bathroom, the boy tried to hit Sumner with his elbow, as stated by a report from the Kenton County Sheriff’s office cited in the lawsuit.

Students of color and students with disabilities are especially vulnerable to such push-out trends and the discriminatory application of discipline. The school was aware of this and had a behavioral plan in place to deal with the students’ conditions, the lawsuit claims.

The mother of the little boy shown in the video says the experience has been a “continuing nightmare” for her son. It should be a place they look forward to going to.

The River City News newspaper reported that Sumner was a teacher for four years, as well as a former Covington police officer who joined the sheriff’s department in December 2013.

Throughout the 7-minute video, which was filmed by school personnel, according to the lawsuit the boy shouts, cries and kicks at a table in front of him. “The school resource officer’s involvement was harmful and unnecessary, and it escalated rather than helped the situations”.

SROs are law enforcement officers, who are assigned in the schools to maintain the safety of students and staff and they act in accordance with their training as professional law enforcement officers. After attempting to discipline the student, school officials reportedly called Sumner to restrain him.