Police, State To Inquire Into Abuse Allegations

A consultant from the state Department of Education is expected to arrive in Coeur d’Alene today to begin looking into alleged abuse of disabled students.

Meanwhile, police will be starting their own investigation. Parents or guardians of three students, plus a former teacher’s aide, have filed criminal complaints alleging injury to youngsters at Lakes Middle School.

Mary Bostick, who works for the state but is affiliated with the University of Idaho, will be here at the invitation of the Coeur d’Alene School District.

“She’s going to look at our allegations of abuse and our procedures and policies in our use of timeout and restraint,” said Patrick Pickens, special education director.

But Lisa Richards-Evans, a private caseworker representing three of the families, is uneasy about Bostick’s state employment, fearing she may not be the appropriate “outside consultant” promised by the district.

The parents’ first choice, University of Idaho education professor Diane Baumgart, suffered back injuries over the weekend and won’t be able to take the job, said Richards-Evans.

She also had contacted a consultant from Gonzaga University. But Pickens would not invite him, saying Bostick is sufficient.

Besides, Pickens said, having another person in the classroom would be a further disruption. The teaching staff and students have been under a lot of stress because of the allegations of abuse, district officials have said.

The complaints started with teacher’s aide Jerry Roth, who was fired in February.

District officials said Roth would not follow orders. But Roth said he had lost his job for calling attention to mistreatment of students. He said they had been dragged, manhandled and left for extended periods in a small “timeout” room.

Roth went to the Coeur d’Alene police station Saturday to file a complaint against the teacher and other aides.

Also filing complaints were Terry Burke, a caretaker for one boy, plus parents Frances McCoy and Mishelle and Steve Bowan.

Copies of the complaints weren’t available Monday.

After the allegations have been investigated, it will be up to the Kootenai County prosecutor to decide if charges will be filed.

Lt. Don Jiran said he has no idea how long the investigation will take.

, DataTimes