Taunton school crossing guard arrested and fired twice in one day – Boston News, Weather, Sports

TAUNTON, MASS. (WHDH) – A former Taunton school crossing guard is facing a second straight day of court appearances after he was seen shoving news crews Monday, shortly after being accused of attacking a parent outside a school.

A mother claims the school crossing guard attacked her with a stop sign as she dropped her child off at school – and it all started with a sneeze.

Louis Chaves, 68, of Taunton, was arrested after officers were called to Taunton High School around 7:30 a.m. for a reported disturbance, police said.

Prosecutors said Chaves attacked a woman in her car as she stopped at the intersection near the high school to sneeze and blow her nose. Chaves allegedly reached through her open window and began hitting her with a stop sign held in his hand while cursing at her.

“I was literally so shocked I didn’t even fight back,” said the woman who was attacked. “And he hit me at a stop sign, and that’s not something you would think possible when you’re taking your child to school. It was a nightmare that I was just stuck in and had no control over. It was literally the weirdest thing I’ve ever experienced.”

Chaves also allegedly attacked the woman’s daughter when she tried to push the stop sign out of the window, prosecutors said.

She got out of the car and was knocked to the ground by Chaves, she said. She was taken to hospital with bruises.

“He just needs to control himself, no matter what is going on in his life. He needs to keep it to himself and not take it out on others. I don’t know what he’s going through, but this is not normal,” the woman said.

Chaves pleaded not guilty to the charges: three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon. He was released on bail, but the judge ordered that he have no contact with the woman or her daughter who were involved in the altercation. Chaves was also fired from his job as a school crossing guard.

Chaves will appear in court again on Tuesday to face charges related to the alleged attack on the news team.

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