Registered sex offenders work as U.S. school teachers and administrators despite laws barring them from contact with children, a U.S. government report says.
School officials in some states enable misconduct to continue by disregarding procedures and warning signs during hiring or by covering up firings of sexual offenders, the U.S. Government Accountability Office report said.
The report, obtained by USA Today, is based on a review of 15 cases in 11 states over the past decade involving people with histories of sexual misconduct working in public or private schools.
Of those, 11 offenders previously targeted children -- and six continued to abuse children in their new positions, the report indicated.
For example, a teacher and athletic coach forced to resign from an Ohio school because of inappropriate contact with girls was hired by a neighboring district, the report said.
The superintendent at his first school had called him an "outstanding teacher" in a recommendation letter, the report indicated.
The teacher was later convicted for sexual battery against a sixth-grade girl in the new district.
When questioned by investigators about why such lapses occur, officials usually said the time and money involved in background checks made it hard to monitor job applicants. Fear of lawsuits also was a factor, the report said.
Thank you, Captain Obvious! Of course, they’re afraid of lawsuits. That’s why they keep the real reason why they were fired quiet. They don’t want the parents to sue. However, they could be doubly liable for the harm the teachers caused those children. They have to worry about the kids from their school and the kids from the new school that were abused because of their failure to come forth with information that could have saved them from these predators.
Every one of these school officials should be immediately fired and blacklisted from ever being able to have anything to do with the school system ever.
