Uproar Grows After Dallas Special Needs Student Handcuffed, Tased During Episode

DALLAS, TX — Backlash continues to grow after a 7-year-old special needs student was recently handcuffed, tased and bruised by Dallas ISD campus police after the boy started to bang his head against a wall during class.

Yosio Lopez, 7, suffers from attention deficit/hpyeractivity disorder and a related mood disorder, according to his family. Last week, he suffered an episode that caused him to bang his head against the wall during class. His family says he's experienced similar outbursts in the past but has always had a trained school aide nearby to calm him down, family members told CNN.

But last Tuesday, that specially trained aide's unavailability prompted the child's episode. In response, campus police are accused of handcuffing the boy while the school principal allegedly put her elbow on his neck while choking him in attempts to restrain him, a family attorney said.

Cell phone footage of the incident has caused an uproar spread on social media, prompting Dallas ISD officials to release a statement.

"The Dallas Independent School District is committed to educating the whole child each day, and in doing so, we believe in providing a productive learning environment that is safe for all staff and students," officials said in a prepared statement. "While there has been media interest into an alleged incident at one of our Dallas ISD campuses, due to federal confidentiality laws protecting the privacy of all students and their families, we are unable to publicly confirm or deny the matter reported."

After the incident at school, Dallas ISD police transported the boy to a mental health facility without his mother's consent, where he was committed for nearly a week, according to the CNN report. The mother told the news station she was unable to visit her son for the first two days of his detention, and said the boy was heavily sedated during his stay at the Dallas Behavioral Hospital.

The child was released Monday night, and is now at home recovering with his mom.

>>> Image via Shutterstock