New office to oversee sexual abuse cases in Chicago Public Schools
The Office of Student Protections and Title IX will be operational by the fall, Chicago Public Schools said June 26, 2018, a day before its expected launch. The 20-person office, backed by a planned $3 million budget, is to act as the authority for sexual abuse cases. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)
Juan Perez Jr., David Jackson and Jennifer Smith RichardsContact Reporters
Chicago Tribune
Chicago Public Schools committed Wednesday to the rapid launch of a new internal clearinghouse for sexual abuse allegations, laying out officials’ latest promises of reform on a day the district’s board approved separate policy overhauls to address years of lapses.
A 20-person CPS office, backed by a planned $3 million budget, is to act as the school district’s authority for sexual abuse cases.
CPS said that group will forward allegations of adult-on-student misconduct to a newly empowered inspector general, conduct its own investigations into student-on-student abuse allegations and ensure the district complies with legal provisions — known as Title IX — that bar sexual discrimination in federally funded education programs.
The Office of Student Protections and Title IX will be operational by the fall, said district CEO Janice Jackson.
Wednesday’s announcement and school board votes marked the city’s latest response to the Tribune’s “Betrayed” investigation, which documented failures in CPS’ response to sexual abuse. The Chicago Board of Education’s meeting was the first since the Tribune published its investigation, and it followed this week’s removal of two prominent high school principals from their duties while officials investigate their handling of abuse allegations.
A group of City Council members also filed formal plans to call a hearing on sexual abuse that has occurred inside one of the country’s largest school systems.
By a 5-0 vote, the school board appointed district Inspector General Nicholas Schuler to a new four-year term, authorized the IG’s office to take over investigating allegations of sexual misconduct by adults from the CPS Law Department and ordered the department to review district sexual misconduct cases dating to at least 2000.
Board members also clarified the CPS child welfare reporting policy to require annual retraining, to mandate that school employees notify their principal after they call the child welfare hotline about suspected abuse and to require the principal to connect the abuse victim with a school mental health worker. District policy currently leaves the issue of offering counseling to the principal’s discretion.
Other changes to the reporting policy sparked some public soul-searching from board members and the vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union.
One modification requires that school employees report to principals any “grooming” behaviors they see on the part of colleagues. The change is aimed at alerting officials to inappropriately intimate relationships with students that can become sexualized — even if it’s not clear whether abuse has occurred. Some expressed concern that teachers might start avoiding one-on-one meetings that can help struggling students.
“My heart is also going out to the great teachers who are going to pull back now because they don’t want to tutor or help a child,” school board member Mahalia Hines said.
Hines said she was concerned that some kids would miss the chance to connect with a teacher. Wrong actions by a small group of educators, she said, could mean “that many of our kids are going to lose out on the connection that they would have with their teachers and principal. … This is a concern to me.”
Schools CEO Jackson agreed that one-on-one conversations were appropriate and added: “We’ve all worked in schools; we know what it looks like when it’s not right.”
“The pendulum is shifting,” said board President Frank Clark. “We’re going to continue doing that until we believe that we have provided every protection possible. I’m sure over time we’ll learn how to strike the right balances. … Until we feel that this situation has been addressed in the broadest possible way and that students are protected, it will force us to go to the extreme.”
Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jesse Sharkey told the board he agreed that people who abuse children “don’t belong in our profession” but expressed concerns about the policy’s practical implications.
“When tutoring a student alone in your room after school, for example, puts you under a cloud of suspicion, I think we have to be concerned about what that would mean for the work that we do as educators,” he said. “What does it mean for a coach? What does it mean for someone who tutors students, that we now have a situation where we’re requiring people to report, ‘Hey, I saw someone alone in a room with a student?’”
Jackson replied that she was “stunned” by some of Sharkey’s remarks.
“I’ve been clear, despite my short tenure, that I accept full responsibility for moving forward and fixing this,” she said. “I would expect that every single person, especially CTU, has a similar posture.”
Jackson’s debut of the Office of Student Protections and Title IX shows how CPS is pressing ahead with suggested reforms to its practices well before former Illinois Executive Inspector General Maggie Hickey delivers a commissioned report on the district’s response to sexual violence. The plan also underscores the limited staffing CPS currently has in place to manage federal requirements that guide schools’ responses to sexual misconduct.
“This new office will provide a level of support to our students and staff that has not previously existed in Chicago Public Schools,” Jackson told reporters Wednesday.
The Tribune’s investigation revealed that the Office of Civil Rights for the Education Department has two open investigations into complaints involving “sexual violence” against students at CPS.
CPS has acknowledged that the cases involved two district high schools. One incident involved a student perpetrator and a student victim, according to CPS, while the other involved a faculty perpetrator and a student victim.
Neither the district nor the federal government has released additional details on either investigation.
The district’s new office will feature a four-person team responsible for training CPS parents, staff and students on harassment, bullying, gender-based violence and sexual orientation.
Eight other staffers will coordinate the district’s response to sexual harassment and abuse incidents in which students are potential victims, connect victims with support services, and notify law enforcement and child welfare investigators.
Another team will investigate what CPS described as “the most serious” student-on-student allegations of sexual abuse or violence.
“We think this is an opportunity, though, because a lot of attention has been given to, obviously, the adult-on-student cases — which are critically important and I think the ones that we have to address first,” Jackson said before the school board meeting. “But we also have an obligation and an opportunity to raise up a generation that understands that this behavior is no longer acceptable.
“In my mind, in my opinion, this will create a better society long-term if we can stop and intervene early before these students become adults and some of those behaviors persist into adulthood,” she said.
CPS said Deputy General Counsel Douglas Henning will be responsible for designing and launching the office in time for the fast-approaching school year.
The CTU’s Sharkey expressed skepticism about the new office. “My bottom-line reaction is that I’m surprised by this, and that I don’t trust its political independence,” he said.
Court Upholds Former PSU President’s Sentence
BY BILL MICHLOWSKI
Pennsylvania's Superior Court has upheld the conviction of former Penn State President Graham Spanier.
A jury found Spanier guilty of child endangerment more than a year ago.
The charge against Spanier arose from the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal at Penn State.
Prosecutors proved Spanier didn't do enough after he learned Sandusky was abusing boys.
Spanier is ordered to serve two months in state prison.
Sandusky is serving what amounts to a life sentence.
Two other Penn State officials already served their sentences in connection with the scandal.
Indianapolis Public Schools employee accused of sexual misconduct involving a student
BY DYLAN PEERS MCCOY
An Indianapolis Public Schools employee was accused of sexual misconduct at Arsenal Technical High involving a student, district officials said.
The incident was reported June 1, according to officials, who declined to identify the employee. The staff member is no longer employed by the district, officials said, but they declined to comment on whether the staffer left voluntarily or was terminated.
The district released a statement saying that all necessary reports were filed immediately to Child Protective Services and in compliance with Title IX, a federal education law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, including sexual harassment and assault. “Protecting our students is our top priority and we will continue to be diligent in our efforts,” the statement said.
The incident was also reported to the Indianapolis Public Schools police, according to district spokeswoman Carrie Cline Black.
Arsenal Tech Principal Lloyd Bryant recently submitted his resignation, said School Board President Michael O’Connor. He said he did not know whether Bryant’s resignation was related to the sexual misconduct allegation.
Black declined to comment on Bryant’s resignation, saying the district does not comment on personnel matters. Chalkbeat was unable to reach Bryant by email or phone.
Bryant took over as interim principal last year after the school abruptly lost Principal Julie Bakehorn. He was later hired to lead the school next year during a district-wide high school reconfiguration.
Indianapolis Public Schools was sharply criticized for failing to report child abuse in 2016. Two district employees faced criminal misdemeanor charges for not immediately reporting sexual abuse allegations against a school counselor, involving a student. The counselor, Shana Taylor, and two employees were fired, with three others resigning in the wake of the incident.
Prominent NY Anti-Sexual Abuse Activist Arrested for Allegedly Seeking to Abuse 2 y/o Children
By Jasper Fakkert
Joel Davis, co-founding executive director of Youth to End Sexual Violence, allegedly attempted to set up a sexual encounter with a two-year-old. (Facebook image)
A prominent anti-sexual abuse activist was arrested after seeking to conduct sexual activity with children as young as 2 years old.
Joel Davis was arrested and indicted in a federal court in Manhattan on June 27 on charges of enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity, attempting to sexually exploit a minor, and possessing and distributing child pornography.
Davis is the co-founding executive director of the group Youth to End Sexual Violence and is currently listed as the U.S. youth delegate for the group. In December 2014, the Huffington Post published a blog post by Davis titled “Youth Are Key to Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict.”
He was arrested after allegedly soliciting from an undercover FBI officer explicit images of a girl said to be the officer’s 9-year-old daughter.
Davis, according to a statement by the Department of Justice, also sought to set up a sexual encounter between himself and a 2-year-old.
“The conduct alleged against Joel Davis is as unfathomable as it is sickening, and as this case demonstrates, law enforcement will keep its watchful eye on the darkest corners of the internet to bring predators to justice,” said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. in a statement.
Davis allegedly told undercover FBI agents that he was sexually interested in children of all ages.
“As if this wasn’t repulsive enough, Davis allegedly possessed and distributed utterly explicit images of innocent infants and toddlers being sexually abused by adults. Crimes against children such as those alleged are taken very seriously by the FBI,” Sweeney Jr. said in the statement.
If found guilty, Davis could face decades in prison.
The charge of enticing a minor for sexual activity carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison; attempted sexual exploitation carries a minimum term of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years; and the possession of child pornography carries a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years.
Reno man faces 6 possible life sentences for lewdness, sexual assault of a child
Sam Gross, Reno Gazette Journal
Jim Hwa Chen, 54, is facing up to six possible life sentences after he was found guilty for one count of sexual assault of a child under 14 years of age and five counts of lewdness with a child under 14 years of age.
Each count, according to a press release from the Washoe County District Attorney's Office, carries a possible life sentence in prison.
The investigation into Chen began when the Sparks Police Department and the Washoe County Sheriff's Office received a report that a child had been abused years prior.
The now-adult victim, a relative of Chen's, had been receiving medical care when she reported the abuse.
She told authorities that the abuse happened over several years when she was between the ages of four-and-a-half and 13, and included multiple lewd acts of touching and sexual assault.
Chen is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 30 in Department 3 of Washoe County District Court.
The investigation into Chen involved extensive family and witness interviews, an interview of Chen and a undercover operation where he admitted to the abuse. He was arrested by the Sheriff's Office Crimes Against Children Unit.
Indiana woman testifies that foster child never told her about alleged sexual abuse while in her care
Bob Kasarda bob.kasarda@nwi.com
VALPARAISO — The foster mom of a girl who claims she was sexually assaulted while in her care told jurors Wednesday afternoon the girl never brought the accusations to her attention.
Rosalyn Buckingham, who also is mother of the accused, Taliaferro Buckingham, testified after prosecutors wrapped up their case in this week's trial.
The defense kicked off its portion of the trial with her testimony.
She said in response to questioning from prosecutors that she was not able to keep an eye on all five of the foster children at all times.
She said the alleged victim never told her she loved the accused and he did not pay special attention to the girl.
Taliaferro Buckingham, 38, of Portage, is charged with three felony counts of sexual misconduct with a minor.
The 17-year-old girl, who was 15 at the time of the alleged incidents, told police Buckingham forced her to have sex four or five times during a two-week period in December 2015 at a mobile home in Portage, in addition to other sex acts, according to charging information.
Defense attorney Michael Lambert has said the allegations are untrue.
The girl and her four younger siblings were reportedly wards of Lake County at the time of the abuse. All five children were removed from the Portage foster home after the allegations of abuse came to light.
The trial is underway before Porter Superior Court Judge Jeff Clymer.
Former Idaho school employee to serve 90 days in jail, probation for sex abuse
Author: Associated Press
GOODING - A former Idaho school employee will serve 90 days in jail and four years of probation for sexually abusing a teenage student.
The Times-News reports Ann Kuroki was sentenced Tuesday to up to 10 years in prison, with the possibility of parole after three years. But the judge suspended the sentence and Kuroki will serve 90 days in Gooding County Jail and four years of supervised probation.
Kuroki must undergo sex offender treatment while on probation. Kuroki could serve her prison sentence if she fails on probation.
Kuroki pleaded guilty in March to two counts of felony injury to a child and dispensing alcohol to a minor.
She was arrested in January after the mother of a 17-year-old Gooding High School student learned Kuroki and the boy had sexual contact.
Texas Man Indicted On Child Sexual Assault Charges
on 8 y/o
By Bryan Kirk, Patch Staff
CONROE, TX -- A Porter man was indicted on Tuesday on five felony counts involving sexual assault of children.
Jeffrey Sean Pittman, 46, is being held in the Montgomery County Jail with his bond amounts totaling $230,000.
Pittman, who was arrested in April, was indicted on three counts of sexual assault of a child, one count of continuous sexual performance by a child, and one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child.
Investigators learned of Pittman earlier this year after the victim made an outcry to officials at the Safe Harbor Children's Advocacy Center in Conroe.
The victim alleged that the abuses began when she was between 8 and 9-years-old and occurred between October 2008 and August 2014 and took place at several locations in Conroe.
Arkansas Man Gets 20 Years For Child Abuse
BY 5NEWS WEB STAFF
FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) — A Prairie Grove man was sentenced June 11 to 20 years in prison for sexually abusing a girl for nearly four years.
Terry Lee Martin, 31, pleaded guilty in Washington County Circuit Court to second-degree sexual assault.
Martin, who received 71 days of credit toward his sentence for the time he served in the Washington County Detention Center, must also register as a sex offender.
Prairie Grove police arrested Martin in July 2017 after learning he had abused the girl monthly since 2013, according to court documents.
Federal agents later searched Martin’s computer and found dozens of sexually explicit images and two videos involving minors.
Florida man tells Maine court the effect of sexual abuse on his daughter
By Donna M. Perry
FARMINGTON, Maine — The father of a girl who was sexually abused in 2014 said Wednesday that she is terrified of her abuser.
“I can’t tell you what that is like to have a child you cannot console because someone violated her,” her father said in Franklin County Superior Court.
Ross Adams, 52, was convicted Tuesday by a jury of unlawful sexual contact for abusing her from July to October 2014 when they both lived in Farmington.
Adams, who lives in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, faces up to 30 years in prison and a $50,000 fine. He is being held without bail pending a sentencing hearing tentatively set for July 25.
The defense plans to file a motion for a new trial.
The girl has lived with her father in Florida since October 2014.
Her father was in court Wednesday for presentation of victim impact statements before he and his daughter return to Florida.
The girl submitted a written statement to be considered at Adams’ sentencing but did not want to come to court Wednesday, according to Deputy District Attorney James Andrews.
The father, who broke down on the witness stand Monday, struggled Wednesday to maintain his composure as he told how the abuse affected his daughter.
He said she grew up on the ocean and was always around and in water, but when she came to see him in Florida, she would not go into the water.
“I didn’t understand why she didn’t want to come into the water,” he said.
She told him the water stings her private parts, he said.
She no longer gets invited to sleepovers, because she gets scared and calls him to come get her, the father said.
He said his daughter was a strong child who now has nightmares and is terrified Adams is going to show up in her life, the father said.
He said he hopes Adams gets the maximum sentence and receives help.
More Child Sex Assault Victims Come Forward in South Lake Tahoe Daycare
A South Lake Tahoe child care center has been closed for a social services investigation during a child sexual assault case.
The South Lake Tahoe Police Department received information of a possible ongoing child sexual assault at the Pequenos Rascals Learning Center on Sandy Way.
Police say multiple victims came forward and reported a pattern of abuse dating back at least two years. Police arrested David Rodriguez-Flores June 20; he is one of the licensees of the facility.
Since his arrest, more victims have come forward; all attended the Pequenos Rascal Learning Center. Police request anyone who has concerns about their children being victims to contact South Lake Tahoe Police.
Missouri Man Sentenced For Child Sexual Exploitation
of 9 y/o
By Stacie Strader
According to the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, 27-year-old Richard James York was sentenced in federal court today for recording cell phone videos of his sexual assaults on a 9-year-old victim.
On January 31st, 2018, York pleaded guilty to the sexual exploitation of a child. York admitted that he used a 9-year-old minor to produce child pornography from March 1st, 2017, to March 16th, 2017. Authorities say York sexually assaulted the child victim and made several videos of the assault with his cell phone. Those videos were discovered by another person, who contacted law enforcement.
U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool sentenced York today, June 27th, 2018, to 25 years in federal prison without parole.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller prosecuted the case. It was investigated by the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crime Task Force and the Jasper County, Missouri Sheriff's Office.
Iowa man charged in sexual abuse of 10 y/o child
CEDAR RAPIDS — A Cedar Rapids man has been accused of sexually abusing of an underage girl.
According to Linn County court documents, around Jan. 1, 2017, 48-year-old Philip Hall sexually abused a child under the age of 12.
Authorities say the child disclosed the abuse, which initiated the investigation. According to the court documents, the girl gave “a detailed and graphic statement” describing how Hall allegedly engaged in a series of sex acts with her when she was 10 years old.
Hall has been charged with sexual abuse in the second degree, a Class B felony.
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