Ex-Little City worker argues self-defense in battery trial
A former employee of Little City in Palatine took the stand Thursday arguing he acted in self-defense when he struck two teens with autism in 2015.
David Sutton, of Round Lake, is charged with two counts of aggravated battery following altercations that occurred Sept. 27, 2015, at the residential center for children with developmental disabilities.
Sutton, who was employed as a life skills instructor, was overseeing residents at one of the homes on campus that afternoon when he says he "tapped" a 16-year-old resident on the back to calm him down, as the teen seemed especially hyper and anxious that day.
The teen, he said, responded by lunging at him and a co-worker and grabbed the co-worker's hair. That's when Sutton said he took the teen's hand and slid it off the woman's hair, then put him in a "wall restraint."
Later, the teen came back from his room and "jumped at me," Sutton said.
"I had never seen him this bad before," Sutton said. "I was scared for my safety and everybody else's."
The two ended up on the ground, after which Sutton says he put the teen in a "floor restraint."
During cross-examination, Sutton and Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Karen Crothers disagreed on whether he "hit" or "deflected" the teen's head at one point during their altercation.
"When your hand made contact with his face, would you agree that hand would cause pain?" Crothers asked.
"I know the type of force to use that isn't harmful," Sutton said. "It's not a slap. It's not a hit. It's just to redirect."
In an earlier incident with a 14-year-old resident, Sutton testified he grabbed the boy's head and pushed it down on a couch with the intention to play.
"I was just playing around with him," Sutton told Crothers. "We were just having fun."
Also Thursday, jurors watched several video clips from surveillance within the Little City home. In one clip, the 16-year-old can be seen reaching toward the head of the female employee. Arms flail and Sutton is seen "slamming," as described by prosecutors, the teen first against one wall and then against another. After a brief pause, the teen can be seen walking away.
Theresa Fifarek, who oversees the staff at several Little City group homes, testified that employees would put "their hands on an individual ... only as a last resort when an individual is a danger to himself or others."
Under examination from Crothers, Fifarek said employees are not allowed, per policy, to strike, shove or "slam" residents into a wall.
Sutton was placed on administrative leave and fired a week later.
Closing arguments are expected Friday morning before the case goes to the jury.
•Staff writer Barbara Vitello contributed to this report.