High-ranking exec cops plea in Atlanta school tests cheating scandal

ATLANTA - Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard says the former human resources chief for Atlanta's public schools has agreed to plead guilty in connection with a test cheating scandal.

According to local media reports,  Millicent Few has agreed to plead guilty to a reduced charge. Howard says Few will receive probation and has been cooperating with prosecutors.

Howard says Few is the prosecution's most significant witness because she's the first person who can testify that she personally saw former superintendent Beverly Hall ordering the destruction of a school's internal investigation.

Howard said he hasn't discussed Few's disclosures with Hall's attorneys, who have been adamant about her innocence.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Journal quotes District Attorney Paul Howard saying that Few will testify that she personally observed Hall commit a crime ordering the destruction of documents related to an internal investigation at Deerwood Academy.

Hall has pleaded not guilty, and her attorneys have denied wrongdoing. 

A grand jury indictment last year charged 35 former administrators and teachers for their alleged involvement in a scheme to tamper with standardized test results.