Bus Matron Arrested, Accused Of Hitting Autistic Student
NEW YORK (CBS 2) -- A bus matron in the Bronx has been arrested by police after being accused of attacking a 12-year-old autistic student. Investigators say the boy had bruises on his face.
"She took him by his neck, and she pushed him so hard," mother Joanne Ortiz told CBS 2's Pablo Guzman.
It might have been an autistic child putting out his leg as a way of telling someone to stand back, but some say the matron on the bus may have thought it was a kick.
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"And she hit him in his face," his mother said.
Joanne Ortiz said she saw the bus matron hit her son, Matthew.
"I'm looking at her in shock, and I go, 'did you just hit my son?' That's the first thing that came out of my mouth," Ortiz said. "She said, 'I'm not going to let your [expletive] son hit me.'
"She attacked me after that – physically. She went to beat me up," she said.
When police from the 40th Precinct saw the bruise on the boy's face, they arrested the matron, 40-year-old Gina Rosado. She was still in custody for most of the day Thursday, awaiting arraignment at Bronx Criminal Court.
Guzman spoke to Rosado's manager, Debbie Lloyd, at Mar-Can Transportation.
"We have never had an incident with this matron…I think there have been a few situations with this particular parent…I definitely stand by this woman. This is way out of character," Lloyd said.
"There should be cameras in these buses," father Angel Ortiz said. "These kids, that cannot speak or protect themselves – there should be cameras in these buses."
The bus company is hired by New York City. It has nothing to do with Matthew's school in Westchester.
New York City's Department of Education suspended Rosado until the investigation is completed.
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