Two Texas elementary school principals were placed under arrest after they failed to report sexual abuse allegations to the proper authorities. Crockett Elementary School Principals Cindy Sue Underwood and Kory Francher Dorman could face fines and up to a year in prison for not informing Child Protective Services of the incidents.
The first incident occurred in October when three six-year-old boys used a school iPad to take sexually explicit pictures of themselves in the classroom. Their homeroom teacher found the photos, which were taken October 3rd, three weeks later on October 25th. The teacher reported her findings to Underwood.
Elementary school principals are required by the Texas Family Code to report any instances of sexual abuse to CPS. However, upon having the incident reported to her, Underwood sent the students home and only informed their parents. After one of the parents reported the incident to CPS, Underwood was questioned by detectives.
A CPS investigator told detectives that by not reporting the incident to Child Protective Services, Underwood put the children at risk. They claimed that in cases where children imitate sexual acts, the assumption is that they have learned from experience and therefore may be abused when they are at home.
In a separate incident, three grandparents of a seven-year-old boy told Kory Francher Dorman that their grandson was sexually assaulted by another six-year-old student in the school bathroom. The incident was reported on December 15th, however, Dorman told investigators that she only became aware of the incident on January 2nd.
Dorman did not report the incident to Child Protective Services. Instead, she delegated the incident to the school counselor. She told investigators on January 25th that she did not have the proper training. However, the Texas Family Code states that these types of incidents must be reported and not taken care of by another employee of the school.
Both elementary school principals were released on $1,000 bail and have been put on administrative leave by school district officials. Dorman and Underwood could be facing further charges. Failing to report the incidents is classified as a class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to one year in prison and a $4,000 fine.
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