Real Estate Photographer in Killeen, TX

KILLEEN, Texas (KWTX) - A Killeen family is approaching two years of a legal battle against the school district. They claim that a teacher restrained an elementary student with autism and mistreated him.

The family and attorney say the district refuses to take any kind of accountability which is why the process continues to drag on.

However, they say, they won’t stop fighting until they get justice for the young boy.

Since filing the case, JW Zepeda, the lawyer on the case, says Killeen ISD has consistently tried to dismiss it.

Additionally, they say the Texas Education Agency investigated the incident and found wrongdoing on the district’s behalf. Zepeda, president of Zepeda Law Firm, says the district is trying to get those findings excluded.

“All we were welcome with was motion after motion, motion after motion, to not only suppress very important third party Texas evidence but to do away with the case in its entirety,” he explains.

Furthermore, he says there is video of the incident but they have yet to be able to get their hands on it and were only able to view it under the district’s eye.

“It hasn’t been released. They forced my client and my attorneys to watch it on their terms and on their grounds,” Zepeda says.

The incident happened back in March of 2024 when Zepeda says the level two autistic student was severely mistreated at his elementary school on post. “They allegedly intimidated him, ridiculed him, pushed him and then took his arms and wrapped them around him like a straight jacket.”

Ever since, the family says the trauma has kept the young boy from feeling safe in one of the few places that promises it.

“My 10-year-old, now 12-year-old, client, has begun to lose faith in humanity. He doesn’t trust his teachers and I don’t blame him,” Zepeda says.

The law firm says they will keep pressing until they get justice for the boy, adding that they encourage parents to do more than simply raise concerns because accountability is how systems improve.

KWTX reached out to Killeen ISD and they say they cannot comment on ongoing litigation.

The statement from the law firm to the media:

The docket report can be read in the PDF below:

The filed complaint is below:

The family of the student released a statement to KWTX, they say:

“My son is a child with autism who had an IEP and behavior plan in place at the time of this incident. Those plans were created to protect him and help adults respond safely when he struggled.

“As a parent, trusting your child’s school is everything. What happened to my son broke that trust. The State of Texas later investigated and confirmed violations, which validated the concerns our family had from the beginning.

“Since this incident, my son has required ongoing support, and our family has had to make difficult decisions to keep him safe and help him heal.

“We are speaking out because no family should have to go through this. Parents deserve transparency, accountability, and assurance that schools will follow the plans designed to protect children with disabilities.”

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