SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – A former teacher at a Springfield school for the severely disabled was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation for repeatedly hitting and insulting a 7-year-old student.
As part of the plea agreement, 65-year-old Janet Williams also will no longer be allowed to volunteer or work near children.
Williams, of Lebanon, pleaded guilty Oct. 5 to misdemeanor third-degree assault. Prosecutors alleged she repeatedly struck the boy, who cannot speak, and called him names while she taught at Greene Valley State School.
The Springfield News-Leader reports as part of the deal, prosecutors dropped a more serious misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child.
A federal lawsuit filed by the family against the school, the state, Williams and her supervisor was settled this summer for $350,000.
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Information from: Springfield News-Leader
