Jan. 28—The family of an autistic, nonverbal child has re-filed a lawsuit against Dayton Public Schools and the paraprofessional who was caught on video last August hitting then three-year-old Braylen Tootle in the head and picking him up by his feet in a hallway as the child ran away from a classroom.
The civil case was originally filed last July, but was dismissed voluntarily in October, according to court records. Attorneys Michael L. Wright, a partner at Wright & Schulte, and Kesha Brooks, the lead attorney on the case, submitted the case again in January.
Brooks said the lawsuit was dismissed and refiled because the criminal case against Darrick T. Sorrells, the paraprofessional involved in the case, brought new information to light and more information needed to be included in the complaint.
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Sorrells has been sentenced to probation for up to five years. He pleaded guilty Sept. 5 to assault and a misdemeanor endangering children charge. A second endangering children count was dismissed as part of his plea.
In Ohio, people who are found incompetent often are eventually brought to trial, though it can take years before that happens. Being incompetent means the defendant does not understand the proceedings or cannot assist with their defense under Ohio law.
Video from Rosa Parks Early Childhood Learning Center showed Sorrells on Aug. 21, 2023, pulling 3-year-old student Braylen Tootle in a wagon down a hallway when the boy got out and started running. Sorrells could be seen in the footage knocking the boy to the floor and then picking him up by the ankles. Another employee saw the incident and took the child away from Sorrells.
Dayton Public Schools superintendent David Lawrence said in a prior statement the district took immediate action to address the incident in August 2023, noting Sorrells was placed on leave the same day and is no longer employed with DPS.
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Lawrence said the child’s parents, Robert Tootle and Taneshia Lindsay, were notified the same day, though the parents say they did not understand the full scope of the problem until Child Protective Services reached out. The parents also said last year they were not notified of the incident until school pickup.
Dayton Public also held a meeting at Rosa Parks Early Learning Center, where the incident occurred, to talk to families and address questions and concerns. The district added staff development days this year too.
“Student safety is the District’s utmost priority, and all matters involving student well-being are taken very seriously,” Lawrence said in July.
The district said they did not have anything additional to add to previous statements.
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