Mom Takes Action After School Official Put Son in Chokehold

News

By Tadi Abedje Published: October 12, 2021

Mom Takes Action After School Official Put Son in Chokehold

This screenshot from Google Earth shows Fairview Elementary School, which the chokehold incident happened to Pamela Ononiwu’s son on October 3, 2018.

In Summary

In 2018, Pamela Ononiwu’s son was put in a chokehold by a school resource officer at Fairview Elementary School in Fairfax Station, Virginia.

Pamela Ononiwu was one of three parents who sued the Fairfax County Public Schools for imposing “psychological trauma” on students with disabilities by using restraints and seclusion to punish them, according to NBC News.

The incident involves her son, who was a victim of this harm when he was five years old. On Oct. 3 2018, Ononiwu went to Fairview Elementary School in Fairfax Station, Virginia, to pick up her son for a dentist appointment. What happened next was horrifying, as she found her son being put in a chokehold by a school resource officer, according to NBC News.

“I repeatedly told him to let my son go. I was scared because I was like, ‘Will I also be shot dead trying to save my son?’ But I said it’s worth it because I’m not gonna be here and let my son die or pass out in front of me,” she said on NBC News.

Leading up to this event, staff had called on the officer to deal with the student, who has ADHD, because he would not stop singing loudly in his Spanish class. After it was over, Ononiwu complained to the principal of Fairview Elementary School, school board members and school district officials about the event. However, she said that they had no concern about it.

This led Ononiwu to sue the school system and run for the district’s school board to get rid of the seclusion and restraint policies, according to NBC News.

“With restraint and seclusion, there are instances where the child can die. Even if they don’t die, it can change their life forever,” said Ononiwu.

According to data from the Civil Rights Data Collection about the 2017-18 school year, the Education Department took note of over 100,000 students who had been subjected to restraint or seclusion nationwide. Of those who were restrained, 78% were students with disabilities, and of those who were secluded, 77% were students with disabilities.