LAKELAND, Fla. — The Polk County School Board voted Tuesday to fire a bus attendant accused of abusing children and adults with disabilities.
Juanita Tappin, 43, who had been suspended without pay since May 15, was re-arrested a few weeks ago after investigators reviewed 30 days worth of video they say showed her abusing two people with special needs who had not been previously identified.
Authorities say the footage showed her hitting a child with special needs on the head with a plastic bottle and the metal end of a seatbelt.
"There are no words to describe how sickened we are to see this woman prey upon these helpless, most innocent of victims," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd previously said.
Deputies say most of the bus riders are non-verbal and weren't able to report the alleged abuse. Tappin faces charges of abuse.
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