Injuries to Children With Special Needs in Schools, Programs and Facilities
A child with autism, a developmental disability, a seizure disorder or a physical disability depends on adults to follow a plan: the IEP, the behavior plan, the seizure protocol, the one-to-one aide. When the plan is ignored, the result is a child who elopes from a classroom and reaches a pond, who is restrained face-down, who is locked in a seclusion room, or who is left on a bus. These are the cases our juvenile-court background was built for.
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How Children With Special Needs Are Hurt
Improper restraint — prone holds, mechanical restraints, untrained staff
Seclusion in closets, “calm rooms” or locked spaces
Elopement — a child who wanders from a classroom, bus or program, often toward water
Drowning after elopement, the leading cause of death for children with autism
Bus and transport incidents — left on a bus, unbuckled wheelchairs, no aide
Medication and feeding errors
Unsafe lifts and transfers for children with physical disabilities
Abuse by staff who count on the child being unable to report it
Florida’s Rules on Restraint and Seclusion
Florida Statute § 1003.573 prohibits seclusion of students with disabilities in public schools and allows physical restraint only in an emergency, when there is an imminent risk of serious injury, by staff trained in approved techniques, with written notice to the parent the same day. Mechanical restraint by school personnel is prohibited. A school that secluded or restrained a child outside those limits has violated a statute written specifically to protect that child, and the written-notice and incident-report requirements create the records we use to prove it.
The Plan Is Evidence
An IEP, a 504 plan, a behavior intervention plan or a daycare’s individual care plan tells the school or program exactly what the child needs: a one-to-one aide, door alarms, a seizure protocol, a feeding plan. When the injury happened because a required support was not in place, the plan itself proves what the institution knew and what it failed to do. We obtain the full educational and incident record early.
Why These Cases Need Juvenile-Law Experience
A child who cannot describe what happened needs lawyers who know how to build a case from records, video and witnesses, and who understand guardianship, special-needs trusts, Medicaid waiver programs and what happens at 18. Both of our partners are Board Certified in Juvenile Law and have spent their careers in the courts that handle children’s cases.
Who Is Responsible
A public school district, subject to § 768.28 notice rules and damage caps
A private or charter school
An ABA, therapy or day-program provider
A group home or residential facility
A transportation contractor
Individual staff who acted with malice or in bad faith
Deadlines
Two years for negligence. Written notice within three years for a public district, with damage caps. Claims involving abuse have longer deadlines under § 95.11(8). Classroom and bus video is overwritten quickly; call us immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
My child was put in a seclusion room at a public school. Is that legal?
No. Florida law prohibits seclusion of students with disabilities in public schools. Restraint is allowed only in an emergency, by trained staff, with same-day written notice to the parent.
My child eloped from school and was found near a retention pond. No one was hurt. Do we have a case?
An injury claim needs an injury, but the incident is a serious warning. Document it, demand a safety plan in writing, and call us. If it happens again, that record will matter.
The school says my child’s injury was “self-injurious behavior.” Is that the end of it?
No. If the behavior plan required supervision or supports that were not in place, the school is responsible for what its failure allowed to happen.
Can my child’s settlement affect Medicaid or SSI?
It can, which is why we structure recoveries for children with disabilities through a special-needs trust that preserves eligibility. We handle this as part of the case.
What does it cost to hire you?
Nothing up front. No attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation; costs and expenses may apply. The consultation is free and confidential.
📞 Call (904) 619-5244 · Text Us · Free Case Review
Free and confidential. No fee unless we recover compensation; costs and expenses may apply.
Related: School and daycare injuries · Abuse and neglect in institutions · Jacksonville child injury lawyer
Reviewed by Belkis Plata and Shannon Schott, attorneys Board Certified in Juvenile Law by The Florida Bar. Updated October 2026.