A woman in Miami, Florida, has been arrested for allegedly beating her autistic son for kissing a classmate’s cheek during school.
Authorities responded to the boy’s aftercare program after the coordinator said a teacher noticed his injuries, according to a police report.
Police said that the 7-year-old boy had “visible injuries” when he participated in a child protective services interview with a case coordinator at the University of Miami Child Protection Team, according to Local 10.
The boy was called in for the interview after a Department of Children and Families investigator made the introduction, according to police.
“I observed a red dot bruise in his right eye, a visible bruise from the right side of his cheek to behind his right ear (purple and red in color), line marks on his left arm, and a bruise behind his legs,” a police officer wrote after they responded to the boy’s aftercare program on February 24, according to a police report viewed by the outlet.
While speaking to authorities, the boy claimed that his mother, Kelly Michel, used a brown belt to cause the injuries. He then claimed that she beat him following an incident that took place while he was at school.
“His classmate fell at school, and he kissed him on the cheek in the hopes of him feeling better,” a police officer wrote, per the report. “Some of the students told the teacher,” and “then the teacher informed the victim’s parents.”
The University of Miami Child Protection Team case coordinator concluded that the boy had “to be removed from the home,” and a police officer then took him to the police department’s special victims unit.
Michel, 27, was arrested two days later on February 26 and 7:30 p.m. in the Overtown neighborhood located in Miami, according to the outlet. She was then booked shortly after midnight on February 27 at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
According to an affidavit viewed by Law & Crime, Michel allegedly confessed to using a belt to hit the boy when she arrived at the police station to pick her son up.
“She added that she hit him several times on his arm and buttocks,” the affidavit said, per the outlet. “She also said that because he was moving around, the belt opened up and hit him in his eye.”
She is currently facing a charge of child abuse with no great bodily harm. It is not clear if she has entered a plea or retained legal representation following her arrest.
The Miami Police Department did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment.
Michel appeared in bond court after her arrest on February 27 and a judge ordered her to have no contact with her son, according to CBS Miami.
She reportedly works as an assistant director for the National Women’s Shelter Network, per the outlet. However, her colleagues declined to comment and asked a CBS Miami reporter to leave when they visited the organization to discuss the case.
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