EAST HARTFORD — The mother of a child with cerebral palsy has filed a lawsuit claiming that staff at Langford Elementary School broke the girl’s leg while trying to put her in a “stander” device.
The accident occurred on April 25, 2013, when the child was in a special education program, according to the claim filed by Magdalena Diaz. Diaz filed the lawsuit on April 14, 2015.
The lawsuit claims school staff members were careless, negligent and unsupervised when they “applied excessive pressure to the leg,” causing a fracture to the girl’s right femur. A “stander” is a medical device used to help individuals with limited mobility stand upright, which can improve physical health and provide other benefits.
The lawsuit also claims that staff lacked sufficient training in proper use of the device.
The girl suffered injuries and trauma, according to the lawsuit, which seeks damages in excess of $15,000 and names the town and board of education as defendants.
The school board and town have denied responsibility for the injury and said any injury the girl sustained, “was caused, in whole or in part, by her own negligence, carelessness, and/or heedlessness,” according to court records.
The school board and town have also claimed that they are protected from Diaz’s complaint by governmental immunity.
Diaz’s lawyer, Gary J. Strickland of Hartford, filed a claim for a jury trial in the case Wednesday. Strickland declined to comment.
East Hartford Corporation Counsel Scott Chadwick could not be reached for comment.
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