A preschool teacher in Ansonia, Connecticut is under arrest after a disturbing incident that left a three-year-old autistic boy with such serious injuries he needed two surgeries. It’s a case that even seasoned investigators are calling deeply upsetting.
The teacher, 32-year-old Mary Durso-Smith, has been charged with two felonies after police say she caused the injuries to the child while he was at recess in March at Mead School. The boy, who is non-verbal and autistic, suffered a broken arm and a dislocated elbow—injuries that required not one but two surgeries to repair.
“The injuries were pretty bad,” Ansonia Police Lt. Patrick Lynch told News 8. “Arm broken and an elbow dislocated, required two surgeries. There was video of the incident.”
And according to investigators, that video tells a very different story than what the teacher first reported. Durso-Smith allegedly told school officials the boy had simply hurt himself, saying she only noticed something was wrong when she went to put on his jacket and realized his arm didn’t look right. But detectives say that explanation doesn’t hold up when you watch the footage.
“Our investigation shows some of the account of her details were not accurate to what the video shows,” Lynch said.
What police say actually happened is that the child tried to climb up a slide the wrong way during recess. Instead of guiding him away gently, Durso-Smith allegedly dragged the child, leading to a fall that caused the severe injuries.
The video, which hasn’t been released publicly, is said to clearly contradict her version of events. Based on that evidence, she was arrested and appeared in court on Thursday. The judge ordered her to stay away from both the child and his family.
The boy’s family is devastated, and their attorney, Ed Walsh, said they never imagined a day at preschool could end with their child being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance.
“The injury itself is pretty bad,” Walsh said. “He’s had two surgeries and there is a good possibility he’ll be permanently disabled as a result of the injury, so the family is united, but still in shock.”
Durso-Smith is now off the job and her case was continued in court Thursday. The charges she’s facing are serious, and given the video evidence and the age and condition of the child involved, this case is already getting attention far beyond Ansonia.
For now, the boy continues to recover from his injuries, and his family is grappling with the possibility that his life may never be the same. They are also dealing with the emotional trauma of knowing this happened in a place where they thought their son would be safe and cared for.
No one ever expects to send their child to pre-K and end up in an emergency room, let alone facing the prospect of a permanent disability. But that’s exactly what this family is living through now—and the legal battle is only just beginning.