Long Island teacher accused of tying autistic student to chair

LONG ISLAND - A teacher in Nassau County, Long Island, has been accused of abusing a non-verbal autistic teen inside a classroom.

The teen's parents, Carlos and Karla Diaz, say their son was found tied to a chair in a classroom, and they weren’t told about it until the next day.

"If it wasn't for the officers who came to the house, we wouldn't have been aware of the actual situation," said his mother.

On Thursday they filed a notice of claim against the Sewanhaka School district.

Their 15-year-old son has autism and is unable to speak. He is a student at Elmont Memorial High School, but on the day that the alleged abuse happened, he was at New Hyde Park Memorial High School for special instruction. 

According to the police report, a teacher for special needs students tied a rope around his stomach.

"I don't understand what happened," said his father. "I don’t know how many times this happened. I don’t know if it’s the first or second time. I don’t know."

In a statement, the district says once they found out about the alleged incident, the teacher was removed from the classroom. 

However, the family calls what went on and how the district handled it negligent and reckless. They are seeking $3 million in damages.

The Diaz family says they also plan to file charges against the teacher and hope their son can move past the incident.

"He’s really confused right now," Carlos said. "He doesn’t want to go to school."