Heartbreaking moment young girl, 13, pleads with school bosses not to send her autistic best friend to new school where she 'knows no one'

A California teenager broke down in floods of tears as she pleaded with her local school board not to send her autistic friend to a new school. 

Footage was shared this week of an emotional Laguna Beach School District meeting, where the community confronted the board's decision to send autistic teen Sailor Jones, 15, to another district. 

The decision was made after specialists concluded that Sailor's special needs are too complex for Laguna Beach High School to handle, and district officials said they had no choice but to find her another school based on the expert findings. 

But the move sparked backlash as the community insisted that Sailor would be isolated and anxious with the move away from her friends and the district she grew up in. 

Sailor's friend Leah Turner, 13, wept as she pleaded for district officials to keep her 'best friend' at school with her. 

California student Leah Turner broke down in tears as she pleaded for her local school board not to send her autistic best friend to another district 

As friends pleaded for Sailor (pictured) to stay in the district, she was described by her friend as 'one of the nicest, most bubbly people' 

'Sailor is one of the nicest, most bubbly people I know,' Leah said through tears. 

'She’s my best friend, and we have so many memories together. It’s just so sad not seeing her every day.' 

The move has been particularly heartbreaking for Sailor's family, with her sister Presley telling the board she had been dreaming of spending her high school years with Sailor. 

'In my head, I always thought about it,' Presley said, reports the Orange County Register. 

'Having my sister by my side is something I’ve always wanted. She’d wear my polo jersey, go with me to football games and be part of the student body.' 

As Presley readies to enter her senior year, she said Sailor will be thinking she is 'not good enough' to be with her former classmates. 

Sailor's family were welcomed by around 100 other members of the community who showed their support at the meeting, who pleaded with the Laguna beach Unified School District (LBUSD) trustees and Superintendent Jason Viloria to intervene. 

Sailor Jones, 15, (left, with her family) was determined by specialists to have to change high schools due to her special needs, leaving her family and friends heartbroken 

And while the district says the decision is out of their hands, some have accused officials of hypocrisy. 

Because Sailor was already part of the LBUSD system, all of her friends are already going to Laguna Beach High, as they all recently graduated together from nearby Thurston Middle School. 

Her father Stuart Jones said she sleeps with her yearbook and repeatedly watches their recent middle school graduation ceremony, as he slammed the school for its apparent double standard. 

'Your website says, ‘Every student, every day.’ It does not say, ‘Some students on given days,' he said at the meeting. 

Jones added that the district previously built a statue memorializing local volunteer Skipper Carillo, who had learning difficulties and became a beloved member of the community as he helped at Laguna Beach baseball and little league games. 

'You built a statue for Skipper right across from the library so our community could take our kids to the library and talk about the value that people that walk different and talk different bring to the community,' Stuart Jones said. 

'That’s what makes us different. So when you tell me you have no place in this town for my child, I say you’re wrong. And these people are here to tell you you’re wrong.' 

In response, LBUSD president Jan Vickers said the speakers were heard, but stressed that she could not intervene if she wanted to. 

'We don't have hard hearts,' she said. 'We don’t make these decisions, but we can provide input and have staff come back to the Jones family.' 

Leah Turner, 13, wept as she pleaded for district officials to keep her 'best friend' at school with her

The decision was made after specialists concluded that Sailor's special needs are too complex for Laguna Beach High School (pictured) to handle

LBUSD Superintendent Jason Viloria insisted that he heard the community's pleas, and said the decision is 'not the end of the story' 

Sailor's parents said their efforts to send her to Laguna Beach high have been exhausting and anxiety-inducing, and they have attempted to navigate a complex certificate program. 

But Sailor's needs were assessed differently by a team of specialists including a school psychologist and therapists, who concluded that she should be sent to El Toro High, around 10 miles away in a different school district. 

Stuart said he worries that his autistic daughter will struggle to find her place among a new group of students. 

'El Toro is a large school where she knows no one,' he said. 'It has two-and-a-half times the enrollment. She’ll sit in general ed classes like she would here.'  

Superintendent Viloria said despite the pleas, the district are not 'in a position to dictate something to the Independent Education Plan team that evaluates each student who qualifies for special education.' 

Viloria concluded that he understood the community's impassioned campaign for Sailor, as he himself was previously a special education teacher. 

'I appreciate them sharing their feelings,' he said. 

'It’s really complicated when we are a school district and can’t say anything and defend ourselves in the court of public opinion. If we are unable to meet the needs determined by the IEP team, it’s not the end of the story. We will be in discussions.'