The mother of an 8-year-old boy is suing a Pennsylvania school district after she says her son was abused, belittled and intimidated by staff at his elementary school.

The boy was attending Nicely Elementary School in Greensburg, according to a federal lawsuit filed Jan. 13.

The Greensburg Salem School District declined to comment on the case due to pending litigation.

The boy, who has autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), was in a special education classroom at the school, where he was “repeatedly and horrifically assaulted and subjected to abuse,” the civil complaint said.

His mother says her son was tightly physically restrained with a sound mat/room divider, as well as “other inappropriate forms of physical restraints and contact which are forbidden by both federal and Pennsylvania law,” the court document said.

“(He) was also verbally abused, belittled, and intimidated by staff in that classroom,” the lawsuit said.

Other children in the classroom were also subjected to physical and verbal abuse, the lawsuit said, and some had “noxious substances” sprayed into their mouths, all of which the 8-year-old boy was forced to witness, leading to him being diagnosed with trauma and stress disorder.

The classroom was “akin to a prison setting,” the lawsuit said.

The boy’s mother and parents of other students repeatedly reported to school officials that their children were experiencing behavioral changes, which the lawsuit said were consistent with “abuse and gravely inappropriate staff conduct.” However, the school took no action, the lawsuit said.

In the fall of 2023, a person from outside of the school district was assigned to the classroom. This person raised concerns about the abuse and conduct by staff in the classroom to the school principal, but nothing was done, the lawsuit said.

The abuse continued until it was reported to child protective services and law enforcement, and the staff in the classroom were removed, with some being charged criminally, according to the complaint.

The mother is suing on seven counts, which each ask for more than $150,000 in damages.

Greensburg is about a 30-mile drive southeast of Pittsburgh.

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