Authorities in Texas have arrested three former elementary school staffers for both restraining and injuring a student with special needs, according to reports.
Teacher Jessica Longo as well as paraprofessionals Julia Cantu and Veronica Guerra-Ulrich were arrested on Monday, December 29, for alleged misconduct that occurred while all three were still employed at Watts Elementary School in Cibolo.
A statement from Cibolo Police did not provide ages for the three educators. It was also short on details about the alleged crime, saying only that Longo and Guerra-Ulrich were charged with felony unlawful restraint, and Cantu is charged with injury to a child, also a felony.
Details about what allegedly led to their arrests were withheld, as were the suspects’ ages. But parents of the kids involved are speaking up.
“I want people to realize you can’t just hurt children,” said Chelsie Lukasik, who has a child with special needs who was in the class led by the three women, speaking to KSAT. “She would scream at him, scream in his face, hit him in the head, hit him on the face, so we’re trying to help pursue action about that.”
Lukasik said her son has negative reactions to seeing pictures of Cantu or even hearing her name. “Another friend of mine, her son is more severe, and he was ripped out of his chair by his arm by one of the teachers that were taken into custody,” Lukasik said.
The police statement notes investigators were able to obtain arrest warrants in this case after interviewing administrators at the school and reviewing security camera footage.
Other families with children enrolled at the school also spoke to KSAT.
“There’s a lot of kids that don’t like Watts because they don’t feel safe at Watts,” offered Billy Underwood, who has a daughter in middle school. When she was at Watts, she did not like her teachers, Underwood said.
Special needs parent Rachel Nicholas told the station she is aware of other assaults of students that have happened at Watts.
The school issued a statement to local news outlets following the shocking arrests.
“Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD became aware of the misconduct on December 17 and took immediate action to ensure student safety, including promptly contacting impacted families and reporting the matter to law enforcement; the individuals involved are no longer employed by the district,” the statement explained.
“In addition, a report has been filed with the Texas Department of Child Protective Services, and an employee misconduct report has been submitted to the Texas Education Agency. The conduct under investigation is unacceptable and not aligned with the district’s values, expectations, or the training provided to staff.”
The statement concluded: “Our students’ safety, dignity, and well-being are non-negotiable and remain our highest priority. SCUC ISD continues to fully cooperate with the Cibolo Police Department as the investigation proceeds.”
Longo, Cantu and Guerra-Ulrich have all posted bonds for their release. Attempts to reach them by phone have been unsuccessful.
Cibolo Police have not ruled out the filing of additional charges as their investigation continues.
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