Pahrump special ed teacher, aides to face felony child abuse charges

Nye County District Attorney Brian Kunzi on Thursday filed charges against Floyd Elementary teacher Sarah Hopkins, 52, and aides Phyllis DuShane, 73, and Kathryn Cummings, 56.

Each faces one count of felony child abuse or neglect in connection with what prosecutors called a "continuous course of conduct" during the past two school years.

The same charge was filed against the school’s principal, Holly Lepisto, for failing to intervene despite multiple complaints about the conduct in the classroom, Kunzi said.

The teacher and two aides are accused of disciplining four disabled students between ages of 5 and 7 with swats, flicks to the ear and pops to the mouth. In one instance, a child was alleged to have been grabbed by the arm and forced to punch himself in the face. None of the children required medical attention.

"The very difficult part of this case is that these kids are severely handicapped," Kunzi said.

Only one of them is capable of testifying in court, he said.

Kunzi said some forms of physical restraint are allowed in the classroom to protect student safety. For special education students, accepted forms of physical restraint are often spelled out in individualized education plans approved by parents, teachers and specialists.

"But when doing it as a form of discipline, it’s entirely inappropriate," Kunzi said.

Educators and parents of Floyd Elementary students have expressed shock and doubt about the allegations against the four women.

In interviews with the Pahrump Valley Times, several parents praised Hopkins and the aides, crediting them for progress their children have made.

Nye County School Board member Tracie Ward told the Pahrump newspaper she has made numerous, unannounced visits to the special education class at Floyd Elementary and she has never seen Hopkins or Cummings do anything wrong.

Ward, whose two sons are autistic and who attend school in Pahrump, wonders if this case was triggered by a misunderstanding about what goes on in a special education class.

"I just can’t believe anything happened in Sarah’s classroom," Ward told the Pahrump newspaper. "I can see how someone just looking into the classroom sees a teacher or aide holding a child’s face, it could look harsh. I know my child has temper tantrums but some parents think their children never cause trouble."

The four women were arrested on Nov. 23 and each booked on five counts of child abuse and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime.

DuShane, Hopkins and Lepisto bailed out of jail last week. Cummings was released on her own recognizance earlier this week.

The Nye County School District has placed the four women on paid suspension pending the outcome of an internal investigation. A third classroom aide also was suspended, but that person’s name has not been released.

Kunzi has no plans to file additional charges against anyone in connection with the case, which he said he is trying to keep "manageable."

"This has not been an easy investigation, and I understand the public does not want to believe these things could happen in our community," he said.

This is Kunzi’s first high-profile case as Nye County’s new district attorney. He took office Nov. 22, six weeks before the scheduled start of his term, because of the early departure of disgraced former District Attorney Bob Beckett, who resigned on Nov. 1 amid legal troubles.

Kunzi said Cummings has hired Beckett as her defense attorney.

Pahrump Valley Times writers Matt Ward and Gina B. Good contributed to this report. Contact reporter Henry Brean at hbrean@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350.