Now, Vestal and other parents question whether the school district was truthful.

“The abuses of special needs children continue to occur because school districts treat this community as a burden rather than a blessing,” attorney Mohamedbhai said in a statement. “School districts routinely fail to train and support those who work with special needs student populations. Choices of where funding goes reveal value choices and school districts lack expertise and compassion to protect our most vulnerable student population.”

Other instances of Colorado school bus attendants accused of abusing children with autism have been reported in recent years.

St. Vrain Valley School District bus assistant Monica Burke pleaded guilty in 2017 to kicking and spraying disinfectant in the face of a student with disabilities. Last year, Poudre School District paraprofessional Tyler Zanella was arrested after video showed him striking at least two students on the bus, according to 9News.

When contacted by The Post for comment on Monday, Littleton Public Schools spokeswoman Diane Leiker shared Lambert’s email to families. The email said Jones was hired in August after “satisfactory reference checks and after passing a thorough background check.”

“She had very limited access to students during her employment with LPS,” the email said. “She has had no contact with students since March 19, the day her employment was terminated.”

The email confirmed police believe there may be another victim.

“We’re going to question everyone forever”

Brittany Yarbrough — mother to an 11-year-old severely autistic, non-verbal boy on Jones’s bus — is left to wonder whether injuries her son suffered since Jones’s hiring were of his own making or at the hands of an adult she trusted.

In September, Yarbrough took her son to the hospital after noticing an injury on his foot. His toe was broken, she said.

Yarbrough contacted the school, and nobody knew what happened, she said.

“He can’t tell us where it hurts and explain what he’s feeling,” Yarbrough said. “We thought, ‘Maybe he somehow hurt himself,’ and left it at that, which is so frustrating.”

Yarbrough is combing through other injuries her son endured throughout the year, wondering what really happened. She said police contacted her, saying they think her son may be a victim of Jones’s abuse.

She hasn’t seen video evidence yet as police continue to investigate.

“I feel betrayed,” Yarbrough said. “We fight so much with districts and schools and teachers to make sure the kids have everything with their IEP (individualized education program) they need and that it’s being followed and that they have the right programming. I never considered the bus for a second because it seems so basic… We have this assumption they’re keeping our kids safe because that’s their duty. Now I feel like we’re going to question everyone forever.”

---------

©2024 MediaNews Group, Inc. Visit at denverpost.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.