5 Employees At Midland Private School Arrested, Charged With Not Reporting Sexual Assault
MIDLAND, Texas (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — Five employees at a Texas private school have been arrested on a felony charge after authorities accused of them of failing to report the alleged sexual assault of a student on campus.
The five employees at Midland Christian School were arrested Wednesday on a felony charge of failure to report with intent to conceal neglect or abuse, the Midland Reporter-Telegram reported.
According to an affidavit, a student told authorities he was assaulted with a baseball bat after being told it was "freshman initiation day" following baseball practice. City officials say another student has been arrested but did not provide details.
The affidavit says the administrators and coaches were aware of the allegations but did not report them. KOSA reported that court documents indicated "the coaches and administrators knew about the sexual assault and were instructed to investigate on their own without contacting law enforcement."
Midland Police were notified of a possible sexual assault on campus on Jan. 28, and police interviewed the victim on Feb. 11. The incident was not documented until Feb. 11 or Feb. 12.
Arrested were: Superintendent Jared Lee; athletic director Gregory McClendon; baseball coach Barry Russell; assistant secondary principal Matthew Counts; and secondary principal Dana Ellis.
It wasn't clear whether any of the five had attorneys who could speak on their behalf. The school's board of trustees issued a statement following the arrests but said it would have no further comment, citing advice from the school's legal counsel.
"The physical, spiritual, and emotional safety of our students is the most important responsibility we bear as educators and one we take seriously," the statement said.
The statement said the school is cooperating with the police investigation and that acting administrators are overseeing school operations.
Midland is about 315 miles (505 kilometers) west of Dallas.
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