At A Glance:
Terms and conditions of Sara A. Seymour’s plea deal:
• 1 year in jail w/363 days suspended to probation. Credited 2 days jail time served.
• Sara plead guilty to one count of neglect of a dependent as a misdemeanor charge.
• An additional charge of failure to make a report was dismissed by the court.
• Sara surrendered her teaching license to the Indiana Department of Education.
• Forbidden to work in any “direct-service position” with someone under the age of 18.
• Given the plea deal Sara A. Seymour will not spend any additional time incarcerated.
The Story Continues:
Sara A. Seymour formerly a 4 year special needs / life skills teacher at Brown Elementary, told a special needs student to eat his own vomit. The incident occurred Feb. 16th 2023 in the lunch room and was captured on security cameras.
The school did not learn of the incident until April 22, 2023, which led to a Brownsburg Police Department (BPD) investigation.
The BPD investigation uncovered that Seymour told the student he would have to eat whatever he threw up, if he vomited. When the boy vomited, Debra Kanipe handed him a spoon.
Both Kanipe and Seymour stood either side of him while the child ate some of his vomit, per BPD reports. The child began “eating his own vomit all while crying and looking at both Kanipe and Seymour” per BPD reports. Later the boy cleaned up the remainder with paper towels.
Three other members of staff were either involved or witnessed it. None reported the incident to school administration. In April 2023, the Hendricks County Prosecutor’s Office filed a variety of charges. All five faced charges of Failure to Report.
The Family Took Legal Action:
The family of the child sought justice for their 7 year old son, they hired Catherine Michael to pursue legal action against the parties involved. The family has said the child has autism, memory and communication issues.
“The incident has shocked and appalled the family and the community, and we are doing everything we can to ensure justice is served and the victim is protected,” said Attorney Catherine Michael of Connell Michael Kerr LLP.
“We ask for privacy and respect for the family during this difficult time,” said the law firm representing the family of the student. “They wish to thank everyone for their support and concern.”
Judicial actions taken to date:
Four of the five cases related to this incident are now closed.
On August 2024 Meghan King a Kids Count behavior technician from Indianapolis pleaded guilty for Failure to Report. A Hendricks County judge sentenced her to 180 days of probation. No jail time.
On October 2024 Julie Taylor, a teacher from North Salem, IN pleaded guilty for Failure to Report. A Hendricks County judge sentenced her to 90 days of probation. No jail time.
April, 2025 as reported Sara A. Seymour formerly a teacher from Avon, IN agrees to plea deal.
May 6th, 2025 Debra Kanipe an instructional aide, of Brownsburg is scheduled for a pretrial conference and jury trial scheduled for June 25th.
Charges against a fifth person were later dropped. This person was placed on leave by Brownsburg Community Schools and later resigned.
Related Story:
>> CLICK HERE << To see the Brownsburg Sentinel’s earlier coverage of this incident.
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Content Via:
Brownsburg Police Department
Hendricks County Prosecutor
The Editor
