Annie and Steve Zolman’s 9-year-old son weighs about 40 pounds and has trouble breathing. If he laughs too hard, or for too long, his lips sometimes turn purple.
“[He] breathes three times faster than a normal kid,” said Steve Zolman. “He does not gain weight. I mean, he’s just very, very small.”
His condition is due to a rare birth defect that prevented his lungs from developing normally. But despite being aware of his disabilities, a former bus driver for the Alpine School District “repeatedly abused” and in one instance “sat” on the child in an effort to “violently” restrain him, according to a federal lawsuit filed by the Zolmans this month. The school district failed to intervene, it alleges.
The civil rights complaint accuses the district; the former bus driver, Kathy Draper; and four other defendants of violating the boy’s constitutional rights. The defendants include the school district’s transportation supervisor, Joe Hayes; special education administrators Ryan Burke and David Turner; and the former bus driver’s aide, identified as Alicia “Doe.”
Both Draper and her aide no longer work with the district, the complaint indicates, but the nature of their departure is unclear. Through a spokesperson, the school district declined to comment, citing the litigation.
“We’re here to create accountability,” said Steve Zolman. “Our [hope] is that there are other parents that never have to do this or never have to question or deal with the horror of their own child being abused by a full grown adult.”
‘I was so mad’
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Annie and Steve Zolman on Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. The parents are suing the Alpine School District, alleging in a civil rights complaint that a former Alpine School District bus driver sat on their son to restrain him.
The Zolmans say Draper and her aide repeatedly “berated” their son between January and March 2022, while the boy was in first grade at Cedar Hills Elementary School, the complaint states.
The abuse escalated on March 24, 2022, when Draper, whose bus specifically served students with special needs, sat on the boy because he was “misbehaving,” compressing his chest, the complaint alleges. For an underdeveloped child with diminished breathing capacity, it was a matter of “mortal danger,” according to the complaint.
When the boy stepped off Draper’s bus to head home that day, Steve Zolman immediately noticed something was wrong.
His son was “obviously distraught,” the complaint states. But because he is mostly nonverbal, he wasn’t able to explain to his father what was wrong. Neither Draper nor her aide offered an explanation, either.
“Both were noticeably cold and distant,” the complaint alleges.
That evening, Annie Zolman called Draper to ask what happened. That’s when Draper told the mother that her son had been “difficult,” so she sat on him to restrain him, the complaint states.
Annie Zolman was so “shocked and appalled” that she asked Draper twice if she had “really” sat on her son; both times, Draper said that she had, the complaint states.
The next day, the mother emailed Hayes, Burke and Turner to report Draper, according to the complaint. They responded by “minimizing” the situation, the complaint alleges, saying that both Draper and her aide had shown “great changes,” referencing previous concerns the Zolmans had reported.
The Zolmans then demanded to see video of the interaction, recorded on a bus camera. On April 19, they were allowed to come in and watch a few clips from the footage, but not all of it, according to the complaint.
In the limited footage, Draper could be heard saying she wished she could “throw” the boy “off the bus,” according to the complaint. At one point, Draper’s aide warned Draper not to sit on the boy, saying, “Kathy, you’re really heavy!”
Draper replied saying that she would “not get off” of the boy until he said “I’m done” or “I’ll stop,” the complaint states, despite knowing that he was mostly nonverbal.
Horrified, the Zolmans stood up and walked out of the room, according to the complaint.
“I cannot remember a single time in my life where I ever had more adrenaline,” said Steve Zolman. “I was so mortified. I was so mad. I was so frustrated. I could not believe how bad it was.”
Driver later charged with child abuse
That night, Annie Zolman texted Draper to tell her she was devastated after what she had seen. When Draper responded, apparently thinking that she was forwarding Annie Zolman’s text to someone else, she wrote: “What a b----, I can’t believe she sent this to me.”
The complaint alleges district officials took no action to inform other parents about the reported interaction between Draper and the Zolmans’ son.
Months later, in October 2022, Draper was charged with one count of child abuse, a class A misdemeanor, court records show. It’s unclear if the charge was filed in connection with the Zolmans’ son.
In March 2023, Draper pleaded no contest to the charge. She was sentenced to probation for 18 months, with a suspended sentence of 364 days in jail should she violate it.
As part of her probation, she was ordered to complete an anger management course with a state-approved provider and share proof within 60 days.
But by May 11, she had failed to complete a course. That’s when a judge ordered her to appear in court to show cause as to why she shouldn’t be held in contempt, court records show.
During a subsequent June hearing, Draper admitted she had not taken an anger management course. As a result, her probation was revoked, then reinstated under the original terms, court records state.
Court records don’t indicate why her suspended sentence didn’t go into effect. The current status of her 18-month probation remains unclear.
‘No way is somebody going to treat my son this way’
Seeing snippets of what unfolded before his son stepped off the bus last year so visibly upset left Steve Zolman in disbelief, he said.
His boy’s life was a battle from the start. He underwent his first surgery six hours after he was born, then spent 90 days in a neonatal intensive care unit before being allowed to go home.
He has what’s called a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), caused by an abnormal opening in the diaphragm, the complaint states. The opening allows organs in the abdominal cavity — like the stomach, liver and intestines — to move into the chest cavity, putting pressure on the lungs and hindering their development.
His case was one of the most severe doctors had ever seen, the complaint states. And though he has made strides, he suffers from asthma and has limited motor abilities.
“I had a flashback,” Steve Zolman said. “No way is somebody going to treat my son this way after everything I know his mother’s gone through. Everything I’ve gone through. Everything our family has been through.”
While their son is now under the care of an “amazing” new bus driver, Annie Zolman said his development was further delayed by the ordeal.
She and Steve Zolman hope their son’s experience can bring about positive change.
“This isn’t only about advocating for [our son] and the horrors and the atrocities that happened to him,” she said. “But it’s to advocate for all of these kids, because we know these parents are worn out. They’re tired. They’re exhausted. And they don’t have the wherewithal sometimes to deal with anything extra.”
The complaint alleges that the school district violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act, among other civil rights violations. It seeks both compensatory and punitive damages.
None of the defendants listed in the complaint had filed a formal response as of Thursday evening, federal court records show.
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