Teacher's aide sentenced for striking handicapped girl, 12
LOUISBURG, N.C. (AP) A teachers aide in North Carolina has been given a 10-day jail sentence and a years probation after being found guilty of using corporal punishment on a handicapped child.
WNCN in Raleigh reports a Franklin County judge found 61-year-old Margaret Harris guilty of a misdemeanor charge of striking a handicapped person.
A former co-worker testified she saw Harris hit the 12-year-old girl multiple times last April, hard enough to bend a large kitchen spoon and leave bruises. Harris denied the charges.
Harris, who lost her job, also must perform 24 hours of community service and undergo a mental health evaluation. Trial concluded Tuesday.
The girls mother says her daughter has Potocki-Lupski syndrome, described online as a genetic disorder which can cause developmental delay and shows some behaviors associated with autism.
https://www.apnews.com/13908de81b9c43b4a551ed6344fcce7d