Schools

Redlands Unified School Board on Teacher Sex Scandal: 'We Need All Facts Brought to the Surface'

A Redlands Unified School District board member made an impassioned statement Tuesday night, at the elected panel's first meeting since accusations emerged publicly last week that an RUSD teacher had sex with three students during the past six years, and gave birth in June to a baby she conceived with a boy who just graduated from Citrus Valley.

Laura Elizabeth Whitehurst, 28, pleaded not guilty earlier Tuesday to 41 sex felonies with boys ages 14 to 17 at the time of the alleged crimes, according to police and prosecutors.

School and district administrators have also come under scrutiny. A July 3 search warrant and affidavit, filed by Redlands police Detective Dominick Povero and signed by Superior Court Judge Richard V. Peel, includes a statement of probable cause that concludes in part:

"Evidence from email communication and personnel files may show teachers, school administrators, and district administrators failed to report suspected child abuse as mandated."

RUSD Superintendent Lori Rhodes has denied anyone at the district deliberately failed to report concerns of alleged teacher-student sex.

School and district officials investigated an unsubstantiated report about Whitehurst and her alleged student lover in May, but questioned separately, they both denied having an improper relationship, Rhodes said.

There was "no credible evidence" at that time of any potential abuse or sexual relationship, according to Rhodes.

The district first called Redlands police about Whitehurst on July 1, after she gave birth to the baby she allegedly conceived with her student, when the student's mother came to district headquarters, according to Rhodes.

Whitehurst was arrested that same day and released on $25,000 bail. She was re-arrested Monday July 8, charged with 41 felonies by prosecutors, and she remained in custody Tuesday night on $750,000 bail.

The five members of the Redlands Unified School District Board of Education are Donna West, Pat Kohlmeier, Neal Waner, Patty Holohan and Ron McPeck.

Here is RUSD board president West's statement on behalf of the Board of Education verbatim:

"You all know about the tremendously troubling events of the past week. I want to address the situation briefly on behalf of the board, and then we must remain silent. The criminal investigation that is underway, and the underlying events, have or will touch the lives of our students, our parents, our faculty, and our entire school district.

"Without talking about the specifics of the case, which we as a board are not in a position to do, several points must be made.

"First, this board joins all our administrators, teachers and staff in expressing our deepest concern for any student, past or present, who has been placed in a situation by an adult that no young person ever should be put in. If the allegations that have been made are true, we are deeply sorry for the pain caused to students, families and others.

"The district has counseling available for any student who feels the need to talk about any aspect of what has apparently happened. To access a counselor, all a student or parent has to do is contact the district's main office and indicate that you or your student would like to meet with a counselor.

"Second, law enforcement is conducting an investigation to determine exactly what happened. We are in a legal arena where schools do not belong. I want to assure our community that, as a board, we are committed to finding out exactly what happened and that we will cooperate with law enforcement to the full extent we can.

"This board has complete confidence in Mrs. Rhodes and our administrative team. From what we know today, this incident has been handled properly. If there is one thing every teacher and administrator understands, it is our responsibility to report reasonable suspicion of abuse. It is also true, however, that false accusations made without proper consideration can be damaging. Having said all that, we expect the investigation to go where it needs to go and to follow the truth wherever it leads. For the sake of our district, our community, and the families involved, we need for all the facts to be brought to the surface.

"Finally, one thing is certain. We must do everything we can in the future to try to prevent any improper treatment of students by adults employed by the school district. This is not the first school district to have this kind of problem. We will explore what others have done and find out what can be learned from law enforcement professionals who have dealt with these matters, and we will put in place any steps that would further ensure the safety and well-being of our students.

"This is a serious and heartbreaking occurrence in the history of our school district. The five of us are mindful that we have employees, families, and, most important, students who have been affected by what has happened, and we very much regret that.

"As board members, part of our job now is not to get in the way. So, while others may want to make statements to us, please understand if we do not reply. You also may have questions, and I hope you will appreciate that - however much we might like to - tonight we will not be able to answer them. We are in the midst of a necessary police investigation, and right now that requires us to maintain our silence.

"We will get through this. We will have brighter days, many of them. For now, we must keep cool heads and trust that when all the facts are known and we have done the things we need to do, we will come out of this a stronger school district."

To read previous Redlands-Loma Linda Patch coverage of allegations against Whitehurst and Redlands Unified School District concerns, click the following links:

Redlands Teacher Sex Alleged: 'She's a Clean-Cut American Girl' Defense Attorney Says

Whitehurst Pleads Not Guilty to 41 Sex Felonies with Former Students

Alleged Teacher Sex Search Warrant Still a Concern for Redlands Unified School District

REDLANDS TEACHER SEX: Whitehurst Now Accused of 41 Sex Felonies with Former Students

Redlands Unified School District Denies Deliberate Failure to Report Teacher-Student Sex

MORE TEACHER SEX ALLEGED: Former RHS Students Claim Sexual Acts with Laura Whitehurst in Her Car, Classroom, Apartment

ALLEGED TEACHER SEX VIDEO UPDATE: Redlands School District Issues Statement

UPDATE: High School Teacher, 28, Accused of Having Sex and Baby with Student, 16


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