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A retired Hall of Fame coach is accused of hitting an autistic boy who was having a temper tantrum at the Richland Public Library.
Frank Teverbaugh, 76, is expected to appear in Benton County District Court next week after being cited with a misdemeanor assault charge in the incident.
He is accused of swearing at and striking a 7-year-old Richland boy who was kicking and screaming as his caretaker tried to lead him out of the library.
Matthew Tolick's mother, Dana, said Teverbaugh back-handed her son, hitting him in the face and giving him a bloody nose, then hitting him a second time on the back. Tolick said she was shocked to see a stranger hit her son.
However, Teverbaugh, who coached multiple sports at Richland High and Columbia Basin College, adamantly denies hurting Matthew and said he only tried to swat the boy's bottom on impulse after the boy struck him first.
"I did not hit him in the nose. I did not hit him first. I had no reason to hit him," Teverbaugh told the Herald. "I'm surprised I tried to swat his fanny when he hit me. It had to be a reaction. I don't know why I did it."
The incident happened in the afternoon on Aug. 14 when Tolick decided to take her three children to the new Richland library. Matthew has an older brother, Nathan, 9, and younger sister, Samantha, 4.
Nathan also is autistic and Tolick has an in-home care provider, Heide Schultz, who helps her with the boys.
Tolick said she, Schultz and the three children spent the afternoon at the library and were getting ready to check out when Matthew, who doesn't speak much, told her he wanted to go home.
Tolick said she tried to explain to him that she needed to check out the book he was holding, but when she took it away he started screaming and she knew he was about to have a meltdown.
She said she tried to calm him down and was getting ready to tell Schultz to take him out to the car when Matthew took off running. Schultz caught Matthew, got the car keys from Tolick and started walking out of the lobby to go outside.
"It's a long lobby and it echoes," Tolick said. "It was overstimulating for him."
Nathan also started getting upset watching Matthew, and Tolick admits she was frustrated by what was happening.
What she saw next, however, continues to dismay her and is what's prompting her to speak out, she said.
Tolick said she saw an elderly man, later identified as Teverbaugh, walking into the library as Matthew was being led out.
She claims Teverbaugh walked right up to Matthew and said, "Shut the f*** up!" and back-handed Matthew in the face.
Matthew apparently retaliated by hitting Teverbaugh and then Teverbaugh hit him a second time, Tolick said.
"I'm just frozen. I'm watching in disbelief," she said.
Tolick said Schultz yelled at Teverbaugh, saying he shouldn't hit a child and that Matthew is autistic. She said Teverbaugh replied, "I don't give a rat's a**!"
Tolick said she asked the library staff to call police but they said she needed to call so instead she went to the police station to file a report. She said Teverbaugh drove by as they were trying to get the boys calmed down in the car and they were able to get his license plate number.
Teverbaugh said a couple of hours after he returned home from the library a Richland officer showed up at his door and asked what happened. He received an assault citation in the mail several days later.
Teverbaugh said he went to the library simply to get a video to watch with his wife. He said he saw Schultz was having trouble with Matthew, who he later found out is autistic. He said Schultz was trying to drag Matthew out of the library and watched as the boy broke free and had to be chased down.
Teverbaugh said he continued to walk down the hallway into the library when he saw the two walking out. He said Matthew kept pulling and jerking and dragging Schultz into his path.
"Finally, he got over to where he was almost in my path and at that time for some reason he turned around and looked at me," Teverbaugh said. "When he did, I said, 'You behave," and when I walked by he hit me."
Teverbaugh said he reached back with his hand and tried to swat the boy.
"I still don't know why -- I'll never know why I reached back to try to swat his fanny," Teverbaugh said. "My hand glanced off his shoulder. ... It had to be a reaction. I don't know why I did it. He hit me pretty good. I was surprised a boy that small would hit has hard as he could. That is the truth."
Teverbaugh said the police officer told him the boy had a bloody nose, but he knows he never hit him in the face nor caused his nose to bleed.
"I'll tell the judge and the prosecutors and anyone else that if I had hit him in the nose at the beginning like she said I did, there would have been a reaction by that woman and the boy. She would have reacted immediately different instead of her walking away 15 to 20 feet and saying she was going to call the police," he said.
"If I had hit him in the nose ... the boy would have grabbed his nose. He would have done something. She would have done something right there."
Teverbaugh added, "That is completely bogus. I've coached for 40 years. I have never seen anyone get hit in the nose and not react to it."
Teverbaugh said he's looking forward to going to court next week to tell his side. He doesn't plan to get an attorney.
Tolick said she'll also be in court with a support group of friends, but she's working to get a lawyer. If Teverbaugh is convicted of assaulting her son, she said she'd like to see him ordered to do community service with an autism group.
She also hopes sharing her story will bring more awareness and understanding from the public in similar situations.
"I want them to understand that I can't do much other than have a huge sign that says, 'My son's autistic,' " she said. "They can always ask if we need help and sometimes all we need is just to be taken to the bathroom" where it's quiet and the child can be calmed down.
Tolick admits it can be a nuisance if a child's screaming in a public place, but people need to be patient and understand the parent is trying to take care of it.
"You can't really change the world, but you can change the world one person at a time," she said. "It's not just about fighting for my child, it's about fighting for a purpose, for children with disabilities and all children."
