Child With Autism Left Wandering Streets After CPS Transit Drop-Off
CHICAGO (CBS) -- An 11-year-old girl with autism was roaming the streets of Chicago's South Side by herself.
That's what happened when her Chicago Public Schools transportation dropped her off--with no supervision, CBS 2's Audrina Bigos shares in this Original Report.
A normal day for 11-year-old Kymera is filled with smiles, but Monday was much different.
"She was sweating profusely and her nerves were all over the place," her mother, Kalaveeta Mitchell said.
That's because the driver of the special needs van dropped her off at home with no supervision. The company is SCR, a vendor of Chicago Public Schools.
"When the van or the bus pulls up they are supposed to release the child to an adult, not just let them out," Mitchell said.
Kymera, who has autism and PTSD, was roaming the streets for almost a half hour--alone.
The young girl said she felt "scared and confused."
And her mom was furious. "Easy pickings for someone to pick her up and take her away and we would never know."
Mitchell wants CPS to be held accountable as well as the company operating the van.
"They didn't contact the school, they didn't call DCFS, they didn't call Chicago Police," she said. "This ended well but it could've ended in tragedy."
CPS sent CBS a statement saying, "The District's protocols were not followed, and we are working with our vendors to ensure this does not happen again."
