Parents Claim Son with Autism Was Tricked by Classmates to Pick Up Animal Feces and Lick His Hand

A 13-year-old autistic boy in New York was allegedly manipulated by classmates during recess, with his parents saying students convinced him to pick up animal feces and then lick his hand.

The incident reportedly happened on Oct. 27 at recess, involving Conor Dunn, a Jewish and Black student with special needs in the Ardsley School District. According to his parents, one student persuaded Conor to pick up the feces, and another then told him to lick his hand, CBS New York reports.

Conor’s parents say he followed the students’ directions because he believed they wanted to be his friends. They added that a group of students supported Conor the next day. The parents also claimed that, following the incident, one of the alleged bullies was attacked in the locker room before a football game.

Conor’s mother, Beth Blank-Dunn, told CBS New York that multiple people came forward with evidence of the alleged bullying, including screenshots of conversations in which a racial slur was used to refer to Conor.

“They’ve also been teaching Conor inappropriate hand gestures and the German march with the arms,” Blank-Dunn said.

The Dunn family filed a report under New York’s Dignity For All Students Act, which is intended to ensure students have a safe and supportive environment free from discrimination, harassment, and bullying. As described on the New York State Education Department’s website, the Dignity For All Students Act “seeks to provide the State’s public elementary and secondary school students with a safe and supportive environment free from discrimination, intimidation, taunting, harassment, and bullying on school property, a school bus and/or at a school function.”