Friday, December 14, 2018

A young student in Camden County, GA reportedly had a life-threatening choking emergency on a school bus -- the school district refused to answer my questions about the child's condition, so I filed an investigation request with the state DOE; a week later I still haven't gotten any answers

source

A couple weeks ago, multiple stories by Jacksonville, FL TV news stations reported a dramatic lifesaving rescue of a young student at a south Georgia public school district who had choked on a quarter while riding home on a school bus.

Having tracked a number of similar cases, I noted that missing from all the stories was any details about the victim, including the child's medical condition, so I made best attempts to learn more from the Camden County Georgia school district.

To my surprise, the district refused to disclose whether the reported victim was in good health and had received proper medical care; refused to provide the name of the bus driver (presumably public information); refused to forward my inquiry to the parents or guardian of the reported victim; and refused to answer any other questions.

I considered the district's response to be irregular, so on December 6, I sent the investigation request below to Georgia Department of Education Superintendent Richard Woods. (Click here to download a copy.)

Since a child's health was involved, I assumed Mr. Woods would be concerned and that I'd receive a fast reply.

But more than a week later, I haven't received any assurance that the reported victim received proper medical care and is in good health.

Since I'm at an impasse, I'm posting/circulating this item, and will report the results.