5-year-old claims Beatrice Mayes Institute teacher's aide choked him, mother shares photos
HOUSTON - In a FOX 26 exclusive, a mother is in disbelief after her 5-year-old son came home from school with a mark on his neck telling her his teacher choked him.
5-year-old Cameron Sonnier attends Beatrice Mayes Institute located in Houston's South Park neighborhood. On Friday, his mother Denise Sonnier, says she got a call from the school nurse that rocked her to her core.
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"She said Cameron had a scratch on his neck, and she was going to clean it up because the skin had been broken; it was like a nail print, like a rounding of a nail," Sonnier explained.
Cameron says he told the teacher's aide in his kindergarten classroom that he needed to use the bathroom, but she said no.
"He said he didn't want to pee himself, and he ran out the classroom to use the restroom, and that's how she ended up coming in the restroom and choked him," said Sonnier.
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To make matters worse, Sonnier says the day before the alleged choking incident, her son came home, and told her a teacher grabbed him by his ear.
"He actually had sores and scratches behind his ear," she said.
After that incident and the nail mark on his neck, Denise says she put two and two together; she says the same teacher's aide is responsible for both injuries, and she's warning other parents to pay attention to the signs.
"He had been coming home saying, that teacher, that teacher," Sonnier recalled.
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Sonnier says she didn't come face to face with the teacher's aide accused of choking her child, and with the anger she's feeling, that's probably a good thing.
"I feel like that teacher should be put in jail, she assaulted him," Sonnier said.
Sonnier tells FOX 26 that she will be pulling her son and his twin sister out of Beatrice Mayes Institute. She also filed a police report.
We reached out to Beatrice Mayes institute about the accusations, and the school's superintendent sent us the following statement:
"Thank you for reaching out to us on this matter. Yes, we are aware of this parent’s allegations against our school employee. Because this is a student matter, I am bound by law not to reveal any confidential information about the student or the specific details at this time. However, I can share that I am meeting with the student’s parents tomorrow morning. I will also meet with the school employee, who is on paid administrative leave until this matter is resolved. I will be seeking to confirm that our student discipline and school safety policies were implemented correctly. Subsequently, I will appropriate any action necessary for the well-being of the child and of the School."