Child abuse charges against 20 charter school workers

The Delaware County District Attorney’s Office has charged 20 workers at a Chester-based charter school with child abuse-related offenses, alleging that some employees and contractors used painful physical techniques to restrain children at the school, while others failed to report the mistreatment. An investigation launched in January identified 26 children at Chester Community Charter School who had allegedly been abused by nine school workers. The children, who ranged from kindergarten to fifth grade, were all part of an emotional-support program at the school known as the Team Approach to Achieving Academic Success.