A Barrie mom has no plans to send her autistic daughter back to school after being reported to the Children’s Aid Society.

And she’s waiting with her lawyer to see what her next move will be.

Colleen Leduc went public with her story after her 11-year-old daughter Victoria became the centre of a sexual abuse claim – one that turns out to be unsubstantiated.

An educational assistant at Terry Fox Elementary School went to see a psychic at the end of May, according to the Simcoe County District School Board. Even though a psychic reading is for entertainment purposes only, the EA was told a girl whose name started with V was being sexually abused. The EA linked the story to Victoria, a student at the school, and informed the principal.

Paired with Victoria’s physical behaviours, actions such as tugging her pants or licking a table, the school thought it was enough evidence to report it.

Leduc was called to the school by the principal, who informed her the Simcoe County Children’s Aid Society had been called.

“How are they going to investigate – with a Ouija board or séance, let’s pick,” said Leduc.

Confident that none of her family or friends has abused Victoria, Leduc pulled her daughter out of school and hired a lawyer.

The CAS has investigated the claim, and closed the file because there was no supporting evidence that any abuse had occurred.

Leduc wouldn’t reveal the name of her lawyer or if she plans to sue the school board over the incident.

 “I’m now seeking legal advice and I’m unclear as to what the board has to offer me,” said Leduc.

“I’m waiting for Victoria to have an educational assessment done by a private psychologist and I will present that to the board. I want her needs to be met.”

Leduc is keeping Victoria out of school because her trust was broken, she said.

She’s on leave from her job and is looking after Victoria because she said there’s no other place for the child to get proper care. Once July hits, Leduc has enrolled Victoria in various summer camps, so the pair will be back on a predictable schedule.

The situation has devastated her family and Leduc wishes, instead of calling the CAS, the school had just talked to her.

“Talk to the parents, communication is key. This has caused so much grief in our family and it was so unnecessary and unprofessional.

“It’s a lot of ignorance on their part when it comes to autism.”

Leduc is in favour of protecting children and reporting signs of abuse, but said it should be based on reasonable grounds.

“Victoria’s behaviours are typical of a person going through puberty who has autism and has no inhibitions.”

Leduc said it’s an injustice that a CAS file has been created when she’s such an advocate for her daughter. She made the situation public because she doesn’t want it to happen to another family.

“People need to learn more about autism and realize what kind of behaviours these kids can display. They can be oddly displayed, but they shouldn’t be construed as sexual.”

Dr. Lindy Zaretsky, superintendent of instructional services with the school board, said schools have no choice but to report any circumstances of suspected abuse.

“We do adhere to the Child and Family Services Act, so we must report suspected abuse, and the CAS investigates to see if there are reasonable grounds to follow up,” she said.

School board staff has made many calls to the CAS in the past, she said, but it’s “not been board practice to use psychic readings as evidence.”

Zaretsky said the board keeps a child’s safety in mind, and the school has been in contact with Leduc to try and get Victoria back to class.

Mary Ballantyne, executive director of the Simcoe County Children’s Aid Society, enourages the school board to call if it has any concerns about a child. And in fact, 80 per cent of calls reporting abuse to the CAS come from schools.

Once contacted, the CAS interviews friends, family, neighbours and relatives to determine if there is a problem. If no wrongdoing is found, a case is closed.

“We write up a report talking about what the situation is and we keep that on file.”

It is clearly documented that concerns were unfounded, she said.

But if repeated concerns are reported again in the future and the CAS sees a pattern, a further investigation could occur.

E-mail reporter Janis Ramsay at jramsay@simcoe.com.