About Shiva Rai:
Shiva Rai is a Nepalese male who suffers from severe autism. He is non-verbal, has extremely limited communication abilities, and is reliant on caretakers for even the most basic of human needs.
At the time of our representation of Shiva, he was a 20-year-old at-risk adult who had been physically, emotionally, and mentally abused by his bus aide Monica Burke for approximately six months in the school bus by the bus’s attendant.
Due to his severe autism, Shiva was unable to tell anyone that he was being abused. Based upon our investigation, the only person on that bus who could have intervened was bus driver William Hall. But rather than report Ms. Burke’s crimes, Mr. Hall remained silent.
Both Ms. Burke and Mr. Hall were criminally charged for their abuse of Shiva. Ms. Burke was ultimately sentenced to 20 months in jail after pleading guilty, and Mr. Hall received a 60-day jail sentence upon being convicted at trial. We settled Shiva’s case for $3.85 million.