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Lawmaker Sees Need for Protection from School Predators

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A state representative believes legislation is needed to insure that sexual predators don’t end up on school pay-rolls.

Rep. Jane Cunningham (R-Chesterfield) says a report conducted for Congress estimates that one in ten schoolchildren are subjected to sexual misconduct at school, sometimes by a teacher or coach. Cunningham is chairman of the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee. She plans hearings early in the legislative session on the issue to determine just how widespread is the problem.

Cunningham says background checks on school employees, including teachers, have been inadequate, sometimes contain invalid information, and aren’t followed-up. She also sees a lack of communication between the Department of Social Services and the Department of Secondary and Elementary Education as well as with the State Highway Patrol.

Tighter regulations and tougher laws aren’t the only answer. Cunningham says parents need to be trained on how to spot signs that their children have been subjected to inappropriate sexual conduct. Cunningham is urging anyone who has a story to tell about sexual abuse at school to come forward and testify to her committee.

Download/listen Brent Martin reports (:60 MP3)

Lawmakers Seek to Attack Sexual Misconduct in Schools

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Rep. Jane Cunningham News reports indicate sexual misconduct might be more widespread in our schools than believed.  A victim’s story is spurring lawmakers to act.

Rep. Jane Cunningham (R-Chesterfield) is chairman of the House Committee on Elementary and Secondary Education. She is asking parents, teachers, administrators and students to come forward to share information about sexual misconduct at schools.

Amy Davis of Columbia has stepped forward. During a news conference at the Capitol, Davis told reporters she didn’t share her experience with an adult for ten years after it occurred, because she was ashamed. Davis is 40 now. She says that she entered a sexual relationship with a male teacher at age 12, cut it off two years later, but kept silent when the teacher told her speaking up would ruin her life and wreck her family. She says she told friends, who kept her secret, but never told an adult until she was an adult and had gone through therapy.

Davis now is encouraging others to come forward during planned hearings before Cunningham’s House committee next legislative session. She says she couldn’t stay silent any longer. She says the only good use she has for the wound is to use it for the good of others.

Davis says the man who assaulted her still teaches in Missouri. State representatives say the law needs to change so that such teachers can be prosecuted, even years after the crime.

Cunningham says she grew concerned about sexual misconduct in Missouri schools after reading a series of investigative reports written by the Associated Press. The reports found that 87 teachers had lost their credentials in Missouri between 2001 and 2005, because of sexual misconduct. The reports ranked Missouri as the 11 th worst state in the nation for educator sexual misconduct.

Cunningham plans to hold hearings a week after the legislative session begins on January 9 th . She says those who would like to address the committee should contact her office so a hearing schedule can be coordinated. [ Photo courtesy of Tim Bommel ]

Download/listen Brent Martin reports (:60 MP3)

Domestic Violence Victims Might Get Added Protections

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 A new protection for victims of domestic abuse has been approved by the legislature.  It’s called the "Safe at Home" act and was a top priority of Secretary of State Robin Carnahan.

 

Safe at Home keeps the addresses of domestic violence victims confidential. Victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking can forward all mail, personal, business and legal, to the Secretary of State’s office which will forward the mail to a confidential address.

Carnahan says that keeps abusers from using a mailing address to track down their victim. Carnahan says she has heard of several stories from abuse victims that they have been harassed or abused again, because the abuser found out their address.

The act is contained within a larger bill, HB 583 , which enhances the rights of the victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault.

To learn more about the "Safe at Home" program visit: http://www.sos.mo.gov/

 

Download/listen Brent Martin reports (:60 MP3)

Judge Delays Ruling on Ag Department Sexual Harassment Case

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A judge in Jefferson City has delayed action on a request from the State Agriculture Department to enforce a settlement with former Department employee Heather Elder, whose allegations of sexual harassment against then-Agriculture Director Fred Ferrell led to Ferrell’s dismissal.

Attorney Bruce Farmer, representing the Department, told the court an oral agreement was in place to pay Elder $70,000 plus her attorney’s fees and to give Elder a letter of recommendation in exchange for her resignation. The deal also had to be kept confidential. Farmer points out an oral argument is legally binding.

Attorney Carla Holste, representing Elder, insists the proposal discussed during negotiations was not the same as what was sent to her in writing. So, as far as she was concerned, there was no longer a "meeting of the minds" and all prior discussions were no longer in play. She adds any settlement requires agreement on all terms of an agreement. Holste says at the very least there was one essential term the parties never agreed on: What, if anything, would remain confidential.

Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce has delayed a request for summary judgment, saying she wants to hear more from attorneys in the coming weeks.

Download/Listen: Steve Walsh report (:60 MP3)

Steelman Stops Payment on Settlement Check

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State Treasurer Sarah Steelman has stopped payment on a $70,000 check that was to have quietly settled a sexual harassment complaint against former State Agriculture Director Fred Ferrell. Steelman also has made a Sunshine Law request for all documents related to the decision by the Missouri Department of Agriculture to issue the check.

Former Agriculture Department employee, Heather Elder, returned the check sent to her by the department to settle the matter privately. Her complaint became public after the state filed suit, saying she backed out of an agreement. Elder has claimed no agreement was ever reached. She says she never signed a written settlement.

Ferrell resigned Monday after Governor Blunt requested his resignation. Democrats have harshly criticized the governor for taking action only after the allegations against Ferrell became public. The State Highway Patrol reported to the governor on its investigation of the complaint nine months ago. This past weekend, a spokesman for Blunt stated that the governor was appalled to learn about the inappropriate behavior. Blunt moved to terminate Ferrell unless he complied with a series of disciplinary sanctions. Ferrell remained on employment probation until his resignation.

Steelman says a lot of questions need to be answered about the process the Department of Agriculture took in trying to settle the case out-of-court and out of the public’s eye. She says it discloses a lack of checks and balances. Steelman questions why the Agriculture Department drew on its own account rather than going through the legal defense fund in the Attorney General’s office.

"Sexual harassment is a very serious problem and when allegations occur they should be properly and thoroughly investigated and followed with swift and meaningful action. However, the attitude that women should not serve in positions of power should never be tolerated," says Steelman.

Steelman is the first Republican to air complaints publicly about the process.

 

Download/listen Brent Martin reports (:60 MP3)

Democrat Lawmakers Want Information on Ferrell Lawsuit

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Seven Democrats who are women members of the Legislature are demanding Governor Matt Blunt explain his retention of State Agriculture Director Fred Ferrell, who’s been accused in a lawsuit of sexual harassment, and why a large payment was authorized to a former employee of the Department in what the lawmakers say was an effort to keep information from becoming public.

Former Department employee Heather Elder is suing Ferrell. Her lawsuit was filed in response to a suit filed by the Department claiming Elder violated terms of an out of court settlement that would have given her $70,000 plus attorney’s fees. Her lawyer says no such settlement has been reached.

The seven women legislators say they have seen the Highway Patrol report on the incident that the Governor admits was illegally compiled and say it is "incomprehensivle" that Farrell has been retained.

A spokesman for the Governor says Blunt was appalled by Ferrell’s behavior and threatened to fire Ferrell unless he served a suspension, apologized, got sensitivity training and paid $10,000 as part of the settlement. The spokesman says Ferrell continues to abide by those conditions and will remain on probation.

Missouri Congressman Disgusted by Foley Scandal

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Missouri’s Congressmen are reacting with outrage about the conduct of one of their own. Northeast Missouri Congressman Kenny Hulshof says it’s appropriate Florida Congressman Mark Foley resigned after it became public that he had sent sexually explicit electronic messages to teenage male pages. Hulshof says the scandal tarnishes the image of Congress. He wants a thorough investigation of the scandal by the House Ethics Committee. Hulshof says it needs to be disclosed who knew what when and how they reacted. He also wants the Justice Department to investigate whether any criminal laws were broken. Hulshof says he’s not sure how the scandal will affect the elections. Foley is a Republican as is Hulshof. Northwest Missouri Congressman Sam Graves, a Republican, says this is a problem that surrounded a sick individual and whether it has an impact on any other member’s campaign is hard to tell. Graves says he’s disgusted by what Foley did, especially since Graves has a daughter who participated in the intern program this summer. He calls the incident very disturbing. Both Graves and Hulshof say they support Speaker Dennis Hastert, who has come under fire for not addressing the problem sooner.

US Supreme Court Refuses To Hear Wentzville Sexual Harassment Case

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The United States Supreme Court has refused to take up a sexual harassment case involving the General Motors plant in Wentzville. The Court, without comment, has refused to hear Diana Duncan’s appeal. She had won one-million dollars in her original trial. But an appeals court reversed the decision. She claims a fellow worker sexually harrassed her from the time she went ot work at the factory in 1994 until she quit three years later. The federal appeals court in St. Louis says there was unwelcome harassment, but it was not enough to be illegal.

State Senator Fends Off Accusation Of Sexual Abuse

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A St. Louis newspaper reports a woman in Sedalia asked the prosecutor there last year to charge a leading State Senator with making unwanted advances toward her. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the prosecutor later closed the case against Senator Jim Mathewson without filing chargesafter the woman’s lawyer said she believed it would be best not to prosecute the case. Mathewson denies any inappropirate contact with the woman, says the police investigation was thorough, and adds he considers it a dead issue. The woman has told the newspaper she doesn’t want to talk about it.