'I will kill you': What happened inside Middleboro school when counselor assaulted student?

Amelia Stern

The Enterprise

June 14, 2025 

WAREHAM — A former counselor accused of slapping a 10-year-old autistic child at a special needs therapeutic school in Middleboro avoided jailtime after he pleaded guilty in Wareham District Court Thursday, June 12.

Steven Adamec, 51, of Attleboro, a former adjustment counselor at READS Collaborative, pleaded guilty Thursday to assault and battery and threatening to commit a crime.

Two felony charges, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery on a person with intellectual disabilities, were continued without a finding and will be dismissed if Adamec successfully completes a three-year probationary period.

His probationary conditions stipulate he not work with children under the age of 16 or who have disabilities, and that he stay away from and not contact the victim.

If Adamec breaks the conditions of his probation, he will be prosecuted on the two felonies, Sharkansky said in court.

What does 'continued without a finding' mean?

A continuance without a finding' is "the order of a court, following a formal submission and acceptance of a plea of guilty or an admission to sufficient facts, whereby a criminal case is continued to a date certain without the formal entry of a guilty finding," according to mass.gov. The continuance may include conditions "the violation of which may result in the revocation of the continuance, entry of a finding of guilty, and imposition of sentence" and "compliance with which will result in dismissal of the criminal case," according to mass.gov.

New details revealed in court: What happened inside the school?

On the afternoon of Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, Middleboro Police said they responded to READS Collaborative on Bedford Street after receiving reports an employee had assaulted a child at the school.

Several teachers who witnessed the incident said Adamec, who was employed as an adjustment councilor at the school, assaulted a 10-year-old during an altercation, Assistant District Attorney Emily Cross said.

One witness reported the child, who has autism, told Adamec to shut up and made comments about his physical appearance. Adamec responded, “You shut up,” according to Cross.

Cross then played two school surveillance videos for the court. The videos show Adamec sitting in a chair in the corner of the room while another staff member speaks with the victim, who appears agitated.

Adamec can be seen standing up, grabbing the child and dragging him out of the room. The footage picks up from a different angle, where Adamec can be seen slamming the child’s head into a doorframe as he tries to pivot him through.

In another room that did not have cameras, Cross said another teacher reportedly saw Adamec slap the child across the face. The witness heard Adamec say, “I’m not the one. I will kill you,” Cross said.

When the child tried to leave the room, Adamec blocked the doorway until another teacher helped the child to exit, Cross said. The 10-year-old was reportedly crying, had blood on the right side of his mouth and was holding his temple in pain, according to Cross.

'Someone he trusted and looked up to': Mom describes impact on disabled son

In court, Cross read a victim impact statement written by the 10-year-old’s mom. In the letter, the mother said this incident happened almost a year after the child’s father died.

“My poor son who was grieving gets assaulted by a grown man. Someone he trusted and looked up to,” the statement said. “This is a man who assaulted my young, innocent, disabled son and has been able to walk around without a care in the world.”

The mother of the victim said her son was hospitalized for about a year after the incident, reporting he was depressed and hopeless. With the time she had to spend with her son in the hospital, she said she lost her job and was forced to relocate her family to a different state to be with relatives, according to the statement.

What defense attorney Kevin Reddington says

Adamec was arrested at the school the day of the incident and booked at the Middleboro Police station, where he posted $500 bail. He originally pleaded not guilty to the charges in Wareham District Court.

Adamec was also terminated from his position at the school that day, according to his defense attorney Kevin Reddington.

Reddington called the claims his client slapped a child far from the truth and questioned how the incident could have possibly resulted in a lengthy hospitalization and relocation, as claimed by the mother in her impact statement.

Who is Steven Adamec?

Adamec is married with three kids and has no criminal record and no history of domestic violence, according to Reddington.

Adamec declined to speak with The Enterprise after the hearing. The READS Collaborate could not be immediately reached at the time of this article's publication.


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