Disturbing new evidence emerges in Katy ISD Special Ed scandal

KATY, Texas - There is new and disturbing information emerging from Katy ISD's Randolph Elementary School.

Fox 26 has learned the Special Education teacher targeted by five CPS complaints this Summer was accused of mistreating disabled children at a different Houston area school District the year before.

While Katy ISD says the teacher passed a background check parents of the three and four year old kids subjected to traumatizing behavior at Randolph say the District didn't do its homework and their children are paying the price.

"They allow them to quietly resign and move on and do the same thing. That is not in the best interest of the children," said Ivana Smith whose son attended the Pre-school class for kids with special needs.

"She was allowed to go from school district to school district. It catches up. What happens if if it's worse at the next district she goes to?," asked Heather Lovell, mother of daughters in the class.

"I don't believe they did any vetting. If they did, they would have known," added Smith.

And there's more. Witness statements obtained by Fox 26 indicate the special Ed teacher berated her students on multiple occasions, admonishing children with autism to "stop being weird."

"There are no words. My son regressed and now I know why," said Claudia Diaz whose autistic son attended the class.

"I mean these children were called weird, repeatedly. They were yelled at. They were dragged by the arm across the room," said Smith.

Internal Katy ISD documents obtained by Fox 26 confirmed the presence of a so-called "thinking chair" in the Randolph PPCD classroom. Witnesses say the teacher would put crying, disabled children in the chair as punishment and on multiple occasions strapped children place, in apparent violation of state rules outlawing use of restraint devices except in "emergency" situations.

"That's providing a lot of clarity as to why my son had bruising on his upper thighs, if they used restraints," said Chris Diaz, father of a son in the PPCD class.

"That's illegal to treat kids that way. It's illegal to strap them down to chairs and try to force them to do something they don't know how to do yet. They are three and four year olds," said said Claudia Diaz.

They Shouldn't have been in that chair. It's not effective with my children. I don't know that it's effective for any children," said Lovell.

"It's sickening to know that that was going on in that classroom," said Chris Diaz.

While admitting the children were subject to "inappropriate educational techniques" Katy ISD continues to deny that children were mistreated or that Randolph's Principals failed to report potential abuse within 48 hours as required by law.

Katy ISD also denies that Randolph Principal Kristen Harper lied to parents about when she became aware of the allegations, even though covert recordings obtained by Fox 26 strongly indicate otherwise.

"It is completely and deeply disturbing that nobody even acknowledges that this is an issue," said Chris Diaz.

To date, 96 days after Katy ISD closed its investigation none of the Randolph special Ed families Fox 26 has spoken with has received a police report, despite multiple requests.

The apparent reason- investigators inexplicably listed none of the children by name as potential victims.