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Special ed teacher not guilty of battery, restraint of students

"Patrick McCarthy, you are free to go."

Except for the "not guilty" finding from Cook County Judge John Scotillo moments earlier, those were the sweetest words 32-year-old Patrick McCarthy has heard in 15 months.

"I'm glad to get part of my name back," said the former Schaumburg special education teacher minutes after Scotillo acquitted him Wednesday of aggravated battery and unlawful restraint of three autistic students in his Robert Frost Junior High School classroom.

The 2007 accusations didn't just tarnish his name, but they "hit at the core of who I am," said McCarthy, who earned bachelor's and master's degrees in special education and was inspired to enter the field by his younger brother, who has Down syndrome.

Defense attorney Thomas Breen never doubted the innocence of his client, who appeared composed and credible under questioning by Breen and Assistant State's Attorney Cathy Nauheimer.

Breen demonstrated his faith with an impassioned closing statement that began quietly, with an acknowledgment of the challenges of teaching special-needs students. The attorney then imagined what might have happened had McCarthy not acted as he did, employing strategies sanctioned by the Crisis Prevention Institute and materials approved by occupational and behavioral therapists.

"I would like to know what parents and the district would do if Patrick McCarthy decided the safest thing to do would be to do nothing," said Breen, referring to the strategies the former teacher used to prevent students from bolting from classrooms, injuring themselves, kicking, head butting and tipping over desks, which witnesses said could trigger "meltdowns" in their classmates.

"You shouldn't have done anything," said Breen. "Don't get involved. Don't take on difficult jobs."

He went on to criticize the investigation.

"They (the police) should be ashamed they charged him with anything," Breen thundered. "They ruined his life."

No, they didn't, said Nauheimer.

"If there's any shame it lays with the defendant," she said, quoting prosecution witnesses who described McCarthy as agitated and his behavior as unprofessional.

"Who has a motive to lie here? It's this defendant," she said.

"Listening to this case reminded me once again how precious an asset our children are," said Scotillo before announcing his finding. "For the most part our faith in the school system and trust in teachers is well-deserved."

Pointing out the witnesses' clear concern and compassion for the students, Scotillo said the truth lay somewhere within their sometimes contradictory testimony.

That said, "I can't ignore the cacophony of chaos that sometimes might exist in Room 136," he said, referencing McCarthy's former classroom.

Stating he found no evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant intended to harm the students, Scotillo stated McCarthy's actions weren't criminal and suggested authorities overreacted to the situation, which he suggested might have been better handled by the school district internally.

Acquittal doesn't guarantee McCarthy will ever teach again. Leery of continuing in the field, he doesn't know if he can, given the stain on his name.

Breen believes his client can recover and hopes the school district considers reinstating him. At the same, the attorney acknowledges the challenges that await McCarthy.

"There's an old expression," said Breen. "A man says to the judge, 'I've been found not guilty, what room do I go to get my reputation back?'"

For Patrick McCarthy, the first stop was Rolling Meadows courtroom 110.

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