Summary August 8, 2007Follow links for updated information.
School hasn't started yet and it's been a bad day.
Updated Charges lead to $2 million bail
In Marin, California, elementary school teacher John Hawthorne had his bail increased after 30 new charges were added. The prosecutor said that Hawthorne used Photoshop to paste digital images of female students on pornography he downloaded from the Internet. They found thousands of pornographic images of prepubescent girls.
TT - Link for Hawthorne
Criminal hearing postponed (again)
For a Buffalo school teacher and his son who were arrested in a racial brawl, a hearing was delayed for the second time. (Headline: "Alleged race motivated bar fight case delayed") as the carnival vendors were not responding to the prosecutor's attempt to contact them. The judge agreed to give the prosecution two more weeks, but warned it would be the last continuance he would be granting in the case.
Not mentioned in today's story in Tonawanda News was the fact that the bar fight began with the son, Nicholas Hempel, 22, hurling racial epithets at a black carnival worker. His father, Paul Hempel, 49, a school teacher in Buffalo approached and claimed he was a police officer. (New York)
Both were arrested. TT - Link for Hempel
Paul Hemple is the husband of former North Tonawanda Councilwoman Sue Hempel.
Trial and unanswered questions
A Piano, Texas teacher is on trial for sexual assault of a child and sexual performance of a child. He is accused of fondling and photographing a 15-year-old girl at Williams High School and showing sexually explicit photos to two other girls. Not previously reported was that Jason Joel Pearce, 33, was banned in one school district for communicating inappropriately with students was allowed to teach at another school district where he worked four more years.
TT - Link for Pearce
Search Warrant Details
A local newspaper is providing details from the arrest warrant for Councilman and substitute teacher Lonnie Jones III and his brother. The house where they allegedly sold cocaine a number of times to undercover officers is across the street and around the block from the police department. Lonnie was hired this year and "worked in a very limited capacity," Anita Alpenfels, the executive director of human resources for the schools. said. (North Carolina)
TT - Link for Jones
In a story about Background Checks... we found
In any other state but Colorado parents would be incensed to know that the state education department only sends school districts an updated list of teacher license revocations and/or suspensions twice a year. (Earlier this month a CBS 4 investigation discovered that Colorado Department of Education does not report 2,000 to 3,000 teacher arrests EACH YEAR to the schools that employ them. Their rationale is that the information is personal and confidential, despite the fact that arrest information is public.)
TT - Link
GUILTY PLEA - sex with two ninth-grade students
In Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Jeffrey Anderson, 23, pleaded guilty to charges of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, indecent assault, endangering the welfare of children, corruption of minors and criminal use of communications devices. He was arrested because conscientious parents monitored their children's Internet use, and we sincerely hope the smarmy little *&^%! goes away for a long time.
TT - Link
SENTENCED - for fraud
It shouldn't have surprised anyone that Tiffany Yglesias, 31, was sentenced for theft. What they should be asking is "How was she hired in the first place to help write a 2006 guide on ways for parent-teacher organizations to avoid theft after her 2004 conviction for theft?" No one at the Toledo public schools for whom she helped write the guide seems to be asking that question.
TT - Link
SENTENCED for Child Pornography
In a case that will cause you to shake your head before you go, "DOH It's Baltimore!" a judge sentenced David Riley, 59, to three years probation (only one of which will be supervised.) Riley had 8,000 child pornography photos, some of which were 'sadomasochistic' with boys 8 to 10 years old tied up and tortured. BUT WAIT, the probation isn't the worst part. Parents asked that Riley be prohibited from working with children during his probation, and the judge refused. "I'm willing to give (Riley) the benefit of the doubt that he just looks at pictures and keeps his hands to himself," Lamdin said.
TT - Link
ARRESTED - for trying to have sex with 4-year-old and a baby
Gordon Erickson, 78, a retired Spokane teacher, was arrested after police wire tapped his conversations as he tried to rent the children for sex. An undercover officer asked him to bring candy, popcorn, and $100 for each child. They arrested him at the house.
TT - Link
Arrested - Sex with a 13-year-old student
A Bronx teacher, Anthony Casey, Jr., 22, was arrested, accused of having sex with a 13-year-old student.
TT - Link
Arrested - Child Pornography
A teacher at PS 10 was arrested possession of child pornography. Chris Moriarty, 40, also happens to be a cab driver whose sexually charged conversations are taped for entertainment and air on HBO's "Taxicab Confessions."
TT - Link
Arrested - Sexual abuse of 13-year-old boy
A West Seneca, NY middle school teacher was arrested for what the newspaper calls "an alleged relationship" with a 13-year-old boy. Anthony Harper, 33, faces a number of charges.
TT - Link
Arrested - Lesbian sex with a 16-year-old student
A North Carolina teacher was arrested after the father of a 16-year-old student taped the conversations. Amanda Maria Athey, 27, was arrested, charged with three counts of indecent liberties and one count of sexual activity between a teacher and student.
TT - Link
ON TRIAL
IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE, the start of the trial of Mark Zana, 39, will infuriate you.
TT - Link
SORDID
It's the only way to describe the murder of an Orlando, Florida teacher who was in the middle of a messy divorce with her husband. Investigators reported that they were both involved in extramarital affairs, which doesn't justify the shooting. But how do you tell elementary school children what happened to Mrs. Walker? Or him. He worked at a technician at another elementary school.
TT - Link
School Board Watch
An Arkansas school board voted to allow a teacher back into the classroom. The Arkansas Department of Human Resources lists her on their Child Maltreatment Central Registry for abuse. Her husband used to be the Superintendent of the school district, but they fired him after some board members said he tried to hide the department'ss investigation of his wife’s conduct along with the $ 1, 200 in district money he spent on her legal bills. Now she will be an elementary literacy coach.
TT - Link
