It's been nearly two months since surveillance video showing a Pasco County school bus aide slapping an autistic child went public.
Since then, 57-year-old James Lambert resigned from the district and on Thursday, his attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf for the two child abuse charges he faces.
Lori Lamb is the mother of the boy in the video. She says 10-year-old Jeffery has been struggling emotionally, to the point he now needs extra therapy.
"My son is reliving each day like it just happened for the first time," said Lamb. "And then to hear a plea of not guilty, that was more than I could even take."
Lamb said some of her anger is directed at the school district, wondering why they haven't changed their policies regarding school bus surveillance video.
"Nightmares," Lamb said. "He is constantly talking about it and wondering if Mr. Jim is gone."
Right now, surveillance video is only reviewed if a complaint is made.
Lamb said she is disheartened and is planning to transfer her son to private school this upcoming school year.
Meanwhile, Lamb said she will continue to make her presence known at the courthouse, as Lambert's case moves forward.
"I'm not backing down," Lamb said. "I am going to stick to my guns and fight for my son and for every other child with special needs."
Lambert is due in court for a pretrial hearing on September 9.
In response to Lamb's comments, the Pasco County School District released this statement:
"The district does not have the resources to monitor the video taken on our 250 video-equipped buses. Those buses are on the road up to 8 hours per day, because most of them do three runs each morning and each afternoon ... it just is not feasible. It also is not feasible for a school district to change its policy because one of its 9,000 employees committed a reprehensible act."