An education assistant with a high school in Barrie has been charged with assaulting a student in his care.

The student, who has special needs, was hurt while on a school outing to a store in Barrie’s south end on December 4th.

Riley Dooley, a 20-year-old from Oro Station, suffered a broken leg, had to have surgery, and was in hospital for five days.

Riley, who is autistic, is home now and is in a great deal of pain.

“His tibia bone was broken,” said his mom Patricia Dooley. “The bone had come out through his skin so there were two exit wounds with bone sticking out of his leg.”

Riley’s parents were told he slipped and fell.

However, the doctor who treated Riley said that his injuries weren’t consistent with a fall.

A few days after the incident, the school board called the parents to say police were investigating.

Riley’s educational assistant, 31-year-old Corey Stibbard of Angus, was charged with assault causing bodily harm on Monday.

“That hurt big time,” said Patricia. “We've spent a lot of time with Riley and we try to make sure he is as safe as he can be and we rely on the school board to do the same thing. It broke our hearts. Knowing that this actually happened and there was a chance that it might have been one of his own personal E.A.s who inflicted this pain on him. I never in a million years would have expected that an E.A. would have hurt him. I though the E.A. would protect him from the outside world.”

Riley’s parents think the E.A. may have kicked him hard enough to break his leg.

He will appear in court in February, and has been assigned by the Simcoe County District School Board to work from home.

"As a school board we take the safety of all students very seriously,” said a representative from the school board. “The SCDSB is cooperating fully with the Barrie Police Service as they complete their investigation and the SCDSB will also be conducting an internal investigation related to the incident."

The Dooley’s have removed Riley from school and aren’t sure if he will go back.