ATLANTA — A family has filed a lawsuit against the Fulton County school district after it says it took far too long for school bus staff members to help a girl after she fell over in her wheelchair.
Surveillance video shows the incident that happened on a school bus last September.
The video shows 16-year-old Jannay Owens tip over in her wheelchair. Three minutes pass before any of the staff members on the bus help her.
“There is absolutely no reason the wheelchair should have tipped over, but when it did, somebody did not come to help her,” attorney Minkah Merritt said.
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Owens’ family alleges negligence on the part of the bus driver and a bus monitor in the back of the bus.
“She’s looking down at something. We’re presuming that it’s a cellphone,” Merritt said.
Merritt said the staff did not properly secure Owens before they took her home from Creekside High School.
The girl’s mother said her daughter, who has cerebral palsy, suffered cuts and scars to her face as a result of the incident.
“Seeing my daughter laying there on the floor, with no one coming to her rescue, I was very disgusted when I saw the tape,” April Moore said.
The lawsuit asks for $14 million in injury and punitive damages. The family also wants a third-party review of safety protocol. Moore said now she personally checks her daughter’s restraints on the school bus every morning.
Merritt said he hopes the lawsuit will also prevent this from happening again.
“I think every parent at the Fulton County school district should be concerned and hopefully this will force them to change their policy,” he said.
Channel 2’s Matt Johnson contacted the school district, which said it can’t comment on the lawsuit.
Cox Media Group
