3 School Employees Charged After Autistic Child Died From Being Restrained

Two administrators and a special needs teacher will be charged this week in the death of a 13-year-old student with special needs.

This is a picture of a crime scene.
Getty

Image via Getty

This is a picture of a crime scene.

Two administrators and a special needs teacher will be charged this week in the death of a 13-year-old student with special needs, CBS Sacramento reports.

The executive director of Guiding Hands School in El Dorado Hills, CA, Cindy Keller, the principal, Staranne Meyers, and special education teacher Kimberly Wohlwend are each facing one charge of felony involuntary manslaughter. The incident, which took place in November 2018, occurred after Wohlwend placed Max Benson in a "prone restraint" when he "became violent," according to authorities.

The teacher pinned him down facing the ground for nearly an hour. He lost consciousness and later died.

The corporation that owned the school will also be charged. "Guiding Hands School, Inc., a California corporation, the entity which owned and operated the school, will be charged with one count of felony involuntary manslaughter," the press release states.

"We are relieved that justice will be served with the charging of those responsible for his death," Seth Goldstein, a lawyer representing Benson's family, said.

The California Department of Education suspended the school’s state certification and was later closed. The Department said in its report that the actions that led to his death "were harmful to the health, welfare and safety of an individual with exceptional needs."

They are scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon.

Latest in Life