Mom Sues Fairfield School Board After Autistic Teen Hurt On Bus

FAIRFIELD, CT — The mother a teen who has autism and is nonverbal has filed a lawsuit against the bus monitor who repeatedly abused her son, as well as the bus company, the school board and the town of Fairfield, according to the Connecticut Post.

The lawsuit seeks monetary damages for the teen’s injuries, and alleges school and bus company officials refused to review surveillance from the bus despite complaints from the teen's parents, the Post reported. A school district spokeswoman and the president of Connecticut Transportation Solutions declined to comment to the Post, and the newspaper was unable to reach the driver, Joseph Jean-Felix.

Jean-Felix was sentenced in February to two suspended five-year jail terms and one suspended one-year term to be served concurrently, according to court records. He also received three years of probation.

Jean-Felix, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty to risk of injury to a child, unlawful restraint and assault, court records said. He was accused of assaulting the 15-year-old on several occasions, police said when the charges were announced in January 2019. The victim's father said that his son came home from school with distinct injuries to his arm, according to police.

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