Minor B. v. Stockton Unif. School Dist. CA3

BACKGROUND

Our recitation of the background is limited to facts relevant to the contentions on appeal. The minor was a four-year-old child with autism assigned to a classroom at Bush Elementary School in 2008. A teacher was assigned to the classroom, and there were also three special needs assistants assigned to the classroom. The three assistants supervised the minor on Friday, September 12, 2008, when the teacher was absent from the classroom. At some point during that day, the minor began to act out. When the minor threw something, one of the assistants placed the minor in the classroom bathroom for a timeout. The assistant later told the minor’s grandmother, a teacher with the school district, that she “snatched” the minor by the arm, put him in the bathroom, turned off the light, locked the door, and instructed him to be a good boy. The assistant said she let the minor out of the bathroom when he began to cry. The grandmother reported the incident to the school principal. That weekend, the minor had accidental bowel movements and urinated in his pants. He was afraid to go in the bathroom and into rooms without light. He kept yelling “dark, dark,” crying, and screaming. On…