This article contains descriptions of the assault of a child; please be advised.
The parents of a five-year-old nonverbal autistic boy have filed a complaint for damages in Pierce County Superior Court against Bethel School District, alleging that a special education teacher physically and verbally assaulted their son inside his kindergarten classroom at Camas Prairie Elementary School.
According to court documents, the parents also allege that another teacher in the class who witnessed the abuse failed to report it when they were questioned by investigators.
The lawsuit was brought by Darrell Gunartt, Sr., and Permella Gunartt, the parents of a child referred to in the court documents as D.J.
According to the complaint, on September 30, 2025, after D.G. threw his lunchbox in the air, a special-education teacher picked him up by the collar and shoulders and screamed “no” in his face.
The complaint alleges that another educator witnessed this interaction and did not report it.
The parents allege that after their child was lifted into the air, a short time later the teacher bent him over the chair and hit him on the buttocks.
According to court documents, during a Pierce County Sheriff’s investigation into the incident, the teacher admitted that she “did swat [D.G.] on the butt.”
Documents also claim that the teacher had hit another student on the hand and the other educator who witnessed the assault failed to make the mandatory report required of the school.
According to court documents, the abuse came to light only after a third temporary paraeducator reported it, prompting the Sheriff’s Office investigation.
According to court documents, D.J. no longer attends the elementary school in the Bethel School District.
In the press release, the parent’s attorney said, “The Bethel School District failed this vulnerable child at every level.”