Bastian “Bazzy” Michel, a 7-year-old boy, was critically injured in a truck accident this summer in San Jose after being released from his afterschool program without supervision. A lawsuit filed by his parents on Wednesday claims that at the time of the incident, Bazzy was unsupervised.
According to the lawsuit, Bazzy’s mother dropped him off at the Kumon Math & Reading Center in the Willow Glen neighborhood on June 24 and waited in the parking lot for nearly an hour for him to come out. During this time, Bazzy allegedly left the premises without the staff’s knowledge. It was only when his mother entered the center to check on him that they discovered he was missing.
While his mother waited, Bazzy wandered onto Willow Street, where he was struck by a truck while attempting to cross the road alone. The impact was severe, causing his heart to temporarily stop beating. Fortunately, an off-duty paramedic who witnessed the accident was able to resuscitate him.
Despite being revived, Bazzy sustained “catastrophic injuries,” according to his GoFundMe page, which he continues to suffer from. His injuries include:
- Collapsed lungs
- Skull fracture and brain bleeding
- Broken legs
- Ruptured spleen
- Bladder damage
- Broken arm
- Internal bleeding
The lawsuit targets Kumon North America and the center’s franchise owners, Systematic Learnings Inc., for alleged negligent supervision that nearly cost Bazzy his life. The attorneys argue that the center failed to adhere to Kumon’s guidelines regarding the education and safety of children, particularly concerning child pickup procedures. They contend that Kumon did not implement any formal checkout procedures or requirements for parents to be present when picking up their children, which led to this preventable tragedy.
“This was a tragedy waiting to happen,” said attorney Mark Boskovich. “There was no policy in place to ensure that a parent was present for the pickup of their child, nor was any type of identification required to allow a child to leave with an adult.”
There is nothing more important to us than the safety, security, and wellbeing of the students enrolled in the Kumon program. All of us at Kumon continue to wish the student a complete recovery. At this time, Kumon has neither been served with nor is named as a party in any legal filings related to this matter. We will address any such claims in the appropriate legal venue.
Fellow attorney Ashley Mompoint Michel expressed their desire for the lawsuit to compel Kumon to enact necessary changes to prevent similar incidents in the future. “For Bastien, we want to ensure that he has the adequate financial resources to make a full recovery and to protect other children from harm due to a lack of supervision or safety protocols.”
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