Charges Settled In Prank-Call Shock Therapy Case

The founder of a Massachusetts special-needs school has agreed to five years of probation to settle accusations that he interfered with an investigation of mistakenly administered skin-shock treatments.

Matthew Israel is founder of the Canton-based Judge Rotenberg Educational Center. He reached the agreement Wednesday as part of a deal to settle charges that he destroyed evidence and misled the investigation.

Under the agreement, the 77-year-old Israel will resign from the center. He had announced he would retire effective June 1.

Prosecutors say Israel had an employee destroy surveillance tapes from an incident in August 2007.

That's when Rotenberg workers administered skin shocks to two students after a prank caller posing as a supervisor instructed them to do so.

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