St. Vrain Valley School District to pay nearly $4 million to autistic student abused on school bus

A school bus became a prison for a young adult student who was slapped, kicked and sprayed in the face with Lysol as he was buckled into his seat.

The woman who assaulted Shiva Rai, 20, did so for at least seven days last August, but Rai, whose autism is so severe that he cannot speak, had no way to tell his family or teachers what was happening.

Monica Burke, the bus aide who abused him, was sentenced Friday to 20 months in the Boulder County jail, ordered to serve 360 hours of community service and will spend five years on probation. Burke, 52, also is banned from ever working with at-risk people, including adults and children with developmental disabilities and the elderly. In July, she pleaded guilty to second-degree assault of an at-risk person and third-degree assault.