Sandra Mathis’ son already had trouble before the accident.
He had a stroke in the womb and always had limited use of one side of his body and limped as a result, the mother said. In a lawsuit released this week, she accuses the DeKalb County School District of making his challenges worse by forcing him to walk across a busy road to get to his school bus, which caused him to be hit by a car.
“They just didn’t do my child right,” Mathis told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday. “He shouldn’t have been put in that position.”
Michael Price, 17 at the time, was struck by a Nissan Altima before daylight on March 24, 2015, on Panthersville Road outside Decatur. He broke a leg and an arm, which resulted in doctors putting in a metal rod and plate, the mother said. He also has scarring on his face.
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The medical expenses have exceeded $259,778, according to the suit, which was filed Oct. 31 in DeKalb County State Court. The suit, filed by attorney Christopher J. Adams of the Ken Nugent firm, asks for a jury to determine how much the family is owed.
The school district didn’t respond to a request for comment and a question about whether bus driver Arlinda Mathis, who is also named as a defendant, is still driving.
According to the mother, the bus driver went to the apartment complex where the mother and son had lived until they had to move in with a family friend. They moved to the other side of Panthersville Road and told the school district about the move, the mother said.
Price, wearing all black, was walking outside the crosswalk when the car driven by Marlon Farquharson hit him, according to a police report. The driver, who apparently wasn’t charged, is also named as a defendant in the suit.
The bus driver, who was parked at the time of the crash, told police she didn’t have her stop sign out or lights flashing when she heard a loud sound, which turned out to be Price being struck.
The bus driver and Farquharson couldn’t be reached for comment Thursday.
Sandra Mathis said her son, her youngest of seven children, has recovered in some ways since the accident. He was able to walk across the stage during graduation from McNair High in May.
But the last year and a half has been much harder than it should’ve been for a boy who was born with enough to overcome.
“I feel like justice needs to be served,” she said.
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