Parent Seeks Justice After Photos Taken Of Special Needs Son In School Bathroom
Fox Lane High School failed to handle incidents where special needs students were being photographed by peers in the bathroom.
Public school bathrooms have become a serious topic of concern for many parents. While most “bathroom debates” center around gender identity and trans students, privacy is another issue which has now entered the discussion after Fox Lane High School failed to quickly handle an incident where at least one special needs student was photographed while going to the bathroom. The family of the student was shocked with how the school mishandled the situation and later found that their child was not the only victim.
Back in March, a New York mother was contacted by her autistic teenage son’s school to discuss the need for a “safety goal.” The Fox Lane teacher addressing her did not detail much information, but noted that her son needed to have a safety plan created for when he uses the bathroom. This immediately alarmed the boy’s mother, and she contacted the principal the next morning to find out exactly what occurred.
The family of another special needs student called on the same day following a “bathroom incident” and both were vaguely told that inappropriate photographs of their sons had been taken over a week before they were notified. Frustrated at the situation, the families were told that an investigation would take place. A letter was sent out to all Fox Lane school parents, and by the end of the month fliers were distributed to seek information regarding what happened.
Within hours pictures were sent in. These displayed the autistic students’ using urinals with their bottoms exposed. In some of the images students had taken selfies mocking the special needs students and even posted them to Snapchat. The photographs dated as far back as September and displayed a serious violation of privacy repeatedly occurring at Fox Lane High School.
Pressured to do more, the Bedford Central School District Board of Education voted at their April meeting to hire a private investigator. In addition, Fox Lane High School suspended the students responsible through the fall, but the Bedford Police Department chose not to press charges and the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office closed the case. The mother of the first known victim does not believe that justice was served.
She believes that the “perpetrators” were protected while her son’s rights were completely violated and ignored. The independent investigation at Fox Lane is still ongoing, giving the family hope for an outcome that will deter these sorts of incidents in the future. The district’s superintendent admitted that school officials are waiting for those results before considering the situation completely resolved.
Whether Fox Lane High School wishes to move on or not, the fact of the matter is that they did not react quickly, nor contact parents as soon as possible. The rights of special needs students were violated in the school bathroom and no legal action was taken. If parents wish for students to be safe at school — especially when vulnerable using the restroom — districts need to be more active in protecting the students they serve and their right to privacy.
