Families Against Restraint and Seclusion

Monday, August 2, 2010

Autism Teacher Charged With Child Cruelty

08-02-2010
http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=106232&catid=158

Centreville, Va. (WUSA) - A pre-school autism teacher has been suspended pending charges of child cruelty and a lesser charge of child abuse, according to Fairfax County Police.

Police said Jennah Christine Billeter, of Fairfax, physically assaulted and mistreated two boys, ages four and five, who were assigned to her class at Deer Park Elementary School, in the Centreville area.

School officials said they suspended Billeter the moment they found out about the charges. Officials said they immediately launched an investigation as a result of the allegations.

Billeter is charged with one count of misdemeanor assault and two charges of felony cruelty to children.

Anyone with more information is encouraged to contact Crime Solvers at (866) 411-TIPS (8477), or call Fairfax County Police at (703) 691-2131.

Welcome to Families Against Restraint and Seclusion

If you've clicked on this blog, most likely it's because you or someone you love has experienced the overuse or unnecesary use of restraint and seclusion. If that's the case, we're glad you've found us, but are sorry you've had need to. We're here to provide guidance and support to those who need it.For everyone else, we wish to inform you that restraint and seclusion are very real and could happen to anyone's children. Every day children with disabilities are restrained or put in seclusion against their will with no parental notification for "noncompliance" and "behavior issues." We understand that under emergency conditions restraint and seclusion may be necessary as a last resort in order to protect the child from harm to self or others, but in many cases these incidences could be avoided.It is our belief that all children should be entitled to a free, appropriate, and SAFE education in the public school system, as specified under IDEA.Together, we can make this a reality for our children!

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Shouldn’t School Be Safe?

Parent Guide – Prevention, Identification and Response to Restraint and Seclusion Developed by parents and for parents. Shouldn’t School Be Safe? is a guide covering the prevention and identification
of, as well as the response to, instances of restraint, seclusion or other aversive interventions.
View and download this report by clicking on the link
below.

http://tash.org/wpcontent/uploads/2011/05/TASH_Shouldnt-School-Be-Safe1.pdf

The following signs may be an indication that your child is being subjected to restraint and seclusion
Loss of interest in activities and life in general
Avoiding activities, places, thoughts, or feelings that remind you of the trauma
Feeling jumpy and easily startled
Not wanting to go out or leave the house
Increase in OCD
Aggression where there was none before Increase in aggression
SIB where there was none before
Increase in SIB
Poor sleep habits
Nightmares
Loss of apatite
Feeling anxious
Irritable
Phobias
Not wanting to be touched
Not wanting anyone too close to him/her Bed wetting
Not wanting to be alone
Regression in school
Regression in personal skills
Regression in social skills
Not wanting to go to school anymore
See links to other sites for information about PTSD

NDRN (National Disability Rights network) is the nonprofit membership organization for the federally mandated Protection and Advocacy (P&A) Systems and Client Assistance Programs (CAP). There is a P&A/CAP agency in every state and U.S. territory as well as one serving the Native American population in the four corners region. Collectively, the P&A/CAP network is the largest provider of legally based advocacy services to people with disabilities in the United States.

If your child is being subjected to on-going restraint, secelsuion and aversive practices please, contact the Protection and Advocacy (P&A) Systems and Client Assistance Programs (CAP) in your state.

http://www.ndrn.org/en/ndrn-member-agencies.html