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Mother Says Daughter Was Sexually Assaulted On School Bus

DENVER (CBS4) - A Denver mother says her daughter has repeatedly been sexually assaulted on a school bus and that she now fears for her daughter's life.

Denver Public Schools is investigating the situation, which involves two students at Thomas Jefferson High School.

The mother, who wished not to be identified in her interview with CBS4, said her teen girl has Down Syndrome and wasn't protected the way she should have been while she was on the bus.

"She has had multiple surgeries, multiple IV infusions, she endures a lot," the woman said of her daughter.

The woman says a 16-year-old student who rides the school bus with her daughter inappropriately touched her and threatened to hurt her if she told anyone about it.

"He said he was going to hit her in the head with a bat and he was going to kill her. He told her he was going to shoot her in the chest with a gun and that he was going to rape her."

The student's mother says she reported the incident to the school immediately. District officials said they then reported the allegations to police.

"She was hysterical, she was screaming and crying and she said she felt dirty and that she hated herself," the mother said of her daughter.

She says the investigation is still ongoing but she's angry that more isn't be done by district officials.

She says she's upset that while her daughter is at home and scared to return to school, the boy is still attending classes.

"She's not even angry, she's just scared. I'm angry, I'm angry and I feel like as her mother I have to protect her because the school system obviously is not," she said.

The mother said she is now in the process of transfering her daughter to another school.

Leaders with Denver Public Schools told CBS4 that because of student privacy issues they can't comment on any specifics of the case. They said they are working with both families.

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