Massachusetts Elementary School Teacher Arrested for Allegedly Slapping Two Autistic 5-Year-Olds

BRISTOL County, MA – An elementary school teacher from Attleboro, Massachusetts, has been arrested for slapping two 5-year-old autistic students.

Susan Martin, 57 years old, from Kingston, was arrested on Monday and charged with two counts of assault and battery on a person with an intellectual disability.

Reportedly, the Attleboro Police Department was contacted by a school administrator from Thacher Elementary School on James Street. The administrator informed the police that a teacher had assaulted multiple students.

The initial investigation revealed that several staff members at the school witnessed Susan physically assaulting two different students on two separate occasions on the same day.

Susan is reportedly a licensed special education classroom teacher.

One 5-year-old student was slapped across the face by Susan at approximately 11:55 a.m., and another 5-year-old student was reportedly pushed and slapped by Susan around 1 p.m. Both children are autistic.

Police said both incidents of abuse were witnessed by several staff members at the school and occurred in a classroom setting.

Reportedly, the staff members who witnessed the abuse informed the school administrators that the children were sitting and trying to stand up when they were slapped by Susan.

Police discovered that the school had asked Susan to leave after placing her on administrative leave several hours before the administrators reported the incident to the police.

According to a police report, the school became aware of the incidents around 1:05 p.m., but they did not contact authorities until 4:33 p.m.

The administrators reportedly told police that during the time between learning about the incidents and contacting the authorities, they were conducting an internal investigation.

Police noted in court paperwork that the failure to report the abuse immediately may have a negative impact on the investigation.

The victims’ parents informed police that the children did not have any visible marks.

Susan was released on personal recognizance after her arraignment in Attleboro District Court. She was ordered to stay away from the victims and refrain from unsupervised contact with children younger than 16.

She is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 23.

“This is disheartening news, as the safety and well-being of our students is our highest priority,” a school authority said in a statement. “We take situations like this very seriously and are committed to collaborating with Attleboro police as they conduct a thorough investigation.”