Lawsuit Claims Disabled Student Burned By Teacher's Tea

AURORA (CBS) -- The family of a special needs student has sued the West Aurora School District and a special education teacher, claiming their son was severely burned by a cup of tea that a teacher left out, the Beacon-News is reporting.

According to the suit filed in Kane County earlier this month by parents Horacio Carmona and Cristina Vivaldo, the boy was 3 years old on Nov. 10 when he was in a pre-kindergarten class at Hope Wall School on Aurora's West Side.

Hope Wall serves students with severe mental and physical handicaps. It serves students in both the East and West Aurora school districts from ages 3-21.

According to the suit, the 3-year-old student was mentally handicapped, unable to speak and had hyperactivity.

The teacher prepared the cup of tea and put it on a counter, the suit claims. The tea cup had no lid and access to the tea was not restricted.

At some point the tea splashed on the child, causing his skin to become red and blister, the suit said. It alleges the teacher and nurse attended to the child, but did not bring him to nearby Provena Mercy Medical Center until 47 minutes after the tea was spilled.

The child suffered "severe, disabling and disfiguring injuries to his muscles, bones and nervous system, including third-degree burns on his face, neck and torso," according to the suit.

The suit argues the teacher should have known that the tea presented an obvious danger in a room full of hyperactive children.

The suit seeks more than $50,000 in damages.

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)