Special-ed teacher charged after "physical altercation" with autistic student

Lorna Collins-Mihill, a 40-year-old special education teacher at the Coxsackie Elementary School and a resident of Rensselaer, faces charges of child endangerment and harassment after a month-long investigation into an incident on a school bus on May 11.

According to state police, Collins-Mihill was involved in a "physical altercation" with an 11-year-old autistic student. The student's father contacted state police on May 16, after he learned of the incident.

The Daily Mail reports that the student involved is severely autistic and non-verbal, and that Collins-Mihill turned herself in:

Collins-Mihill was arrested by State Police after turning herself in with her attorney and charged with endangering the welfare of a child, a class A misdemeanor and second degree harassment, a violation.