West Palm Beach, FLORIDA

Lewd and lascivious molestation.

November 3, 2008 - At first, Chad Stoffel, 32, pleaded "best interest" guilty to the felony lewd and lascivious molestation in exchange for a term of five years probation, including the first two years on sex-offender probation. According to the terms of plea, he would become a convicted felon. The lewd and lascivious molestation charge was for alleged incidents between March 2003 and April 2004 with one of his students at Summit Christian School. The boy was 14 or 15 at the time.

However, minutes later Stoffel vacated his plea after a glitch in the terms of the deal could not be ironed out with probation officers. The contention was that under probation, he could not live with 1000 feet of a place where children congregate. His current residence doesn't meet that requirement. The prosecution said the state would waive it, but the probation department would not agree.

Another plea conference is scheduled for November 24.

OTHER CHARGES DROPPED
Prosecutor Philip Wiseberg told a judge that a phalanx of felonies Stoffel faced in a separate case would be dropped because victim was uncooperative. Sheriff's deputies charged Stoffel with unlawful sexual activity with a minor and battery of a child for alleged sexual acts with a 16-year-old student at Wellington Christian School.

Stoffel came to the attention of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office when a counselor at a religious retreat in Memphis called and said Stoffel had admitted to molesting boys in South Florida. He disclosed sexual activity with boys dating back 10 to 12 years.
Full Name: Chad Stoffel

When Stoffel was arrested in March 2006, Pembroke Pines police said Stoffel molested two boys there in 1995 but both victims, by then adults, said they didn't want the cases prosecuted.
----------------------
LEGAL NOTE: A "best interest plea" means that a defendant does not admit guilt to any offense, but agrees that a guilty plea is in his best interest under the circumstances. The defendant is sentenced, while still able to disagree with the prosecutor's description of events.

Under a best intererst plea, the criminal defendant does not admit the act, but admits that the prosecution could likely prove the charge. The court will pronounce the defendant guilty. The defendant may plead guilty yet not admit all the facts that comprise the crime. Such a plea allows defendant to plead guilty even while unable or unwilling to admit guilt.
It is also sometimes refered to as an Alford plea. Source: U.S. Legal.com

UPDATED ON BAD, BAD TEACHER link

Pasco County, FLORIDA

Time to update the yearbooks.

Headline: "Former Pasco teacher charged with drug trafficking"

October 31, 2008 - William A. Napolitano, 49, was arrested at a traffic stop when the trooper noticed a small plastic bag of cocaine on the front seat of the car, according to an FHP report.

A search of the car revealed $13,000 in cash, 31 grams of cocaine, 2 grams of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, including glass smoking pipes and butane torches, the release said. A female companion was also arrested. She had 36 grams of cocaine in her possession. With a street value of $50 a gram, the cocaine found on Napolitano and Lang is worth about $3,350.

Both were charged with trafficking in cocaine, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

CHARGED IN 1998 and 2004. Napolitano was charged in 1998 with soliciting a prostitute in Hillsborough County after authorities said he offered an undercover officer $15 for sex. He pleaded no contest on that charge. School superintendent John Long recommended he be fired after that arrest, but he kept his teaching job by agreeing to punitive and rehabilitative measures with the school district and state.

He was hired as boys track and cross country coach at Mitchell in 2000, earning recognition for his work. The Sunshine Athletic Conference and the Pasco Times both named him 2003 boys cross country Coach of the Year.

That same year, Napolitano was charged with soliciting a prostitute after authorities said he offered an undercover police officer $20 for oral sex.

He no longer works for the school district.

Lithia, FLORIDA

How dumb can you be to be caught in a Craiglist sex sting?

October 21, 2008 - 50-year-old Richard Kemper was arrested after responding to a posting on Craigslist. But the ad had been posted by undercover Polk County Sheriff's detectives.

Kemper, a teacher at Randall Middle School, traveled Friday night to a home in Winter Haven and offered the undercover officer $150 for sex. Kemper is charged with soliciting another to commit lewdness, prostitution and battery. The battery charges stem from him touching the undercover officer, according to the St. Petersburg Times. They report that he has been suspended. Other stories do not confirm this.

It does not say whether he was trying to solicit sex from a male or female officer.

He was among 13 people arrested in the Internet sex sting. A software developer, paint-store manager, citrus buyer, a 74-year-old retiree and truck driver, among others, were also arrested.
----------------
OTHER INFO:
Arresting Agency: Polk County Sheriff's Office
School Location: Hillsborough County
----------------
ONLINE RESOURCES:
You can find teacher discipline records lookup here.
Quick name: MyFloridaTeacher.com
It requires LAST NAME or DISTRICT. If you are unsure of the District name, browse any district, or look up the district at GreatSchools.net

Florida has an educator certification lookup.

Education Information & Accountability Services data reports are meant for parents and taxpayers. Example:- Teacher Salary, Experience, and Degree Level 2006-07

Eustis, FLORIDA

"Desperate Teachers of Florida," Episode #458

October 18, 2008 - Eustis High School English teacher Laura Pace, 38, was arrested, charged with five counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. For sexual activity with two male students.

The Lake County Sheriff's Office began investigating after the Lake County School Board received an e-mail detailing sexual misconduct between her and the two male students. One was an ongoing relationship then an encounter with the second. The papers say she sent images of her breasts and buttocks to one teen via cell phone.

One teen provided investigators with a letter handwritten on the fronts and backs of eight pages that Pace left in his mailbox, in which she apologizes for her sexual encounter with the second teen and tried to explain her drug use.The second teen told investigators he had one encounter with Pace at her home, where they also smoked marijuana and she offered him Adderall, an amphetamine. Both boys were 16 at the time and both have transferred to another school.

Pace is married.

South Daytona, CALIFORNIA

"Desperate Teachers of Florida," Episode #459

October 23, 2008 - Cynthia Horvath, 45, a teacher at Warner Christian Academy, was arrested, accused of having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student between June and September. She is being charged with unlawful sexual activity with a minor.

After she was arrested by Port Orange police on Wednesday morning and taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach, the Daytona Beach police filed an identical charge against her. Investigators think the two carried on their relationship at hotels in both cities.

Faced with termination, Horvath, an English teacher and cheer coach, resigned from Warner Christian Academy on Oct. 12, a day before a school official contacted South Daytona police about allegations she had a four-month sexual relationship with the student, according to a police report.

The school has not decided whether the boy will be allowed to return to school.
Horvath is married with four children.
(Photo Port Orange Police)

Tampa, FLORIDA

October 24, 2007 - Christina Butler, 33, a special education teacher at Middleton High School, was arrested and charged with having sex with a ninth grade student.

Butler faces charges of lewd and lascivious battery after detectives say she had sex with a 15-year-old boy who is reportedly one of her students.

She was arrested after police officers stopped teenagers in a car belonging to the teacher.

According to Tampa Police, they pulled over a Jeep Cherokee on 22nd Street after it was spotted driving erratically. Officers say the Jeep was occupied by a group of six teenage boys.

Once officers stopped the vehicle, they determined it belonged to Butler. The driver stated that he did not have a license and his friend Christina let him use the Jeep.

Butler was called to the scene to pick up her vehicle.

While waiting for Butler to arrive, officers spoke with one of the kids, who said the driver was in a relationship with the teacher.

When asked what type of relationship, police say the boy just smiled and said, "I don't ask what they do, they are just good friends," and smiled again.

The officers became suspicious of the possible relationship. According to police, when Christina Butler arrived, she first stated her relationship with the victim was platonic, but then admitted to having a sexual relationship with the student.

Butler has been suspended with pay.

Charge Report from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

Oct 26 - The school was notified TWICE about Butler's inappropriate relationship with the boy, but the school dismissed the girl's reports as "rumor" and suspended her. TT - Link

Oct 31 - Butler has been hospitalized because of "emotional stress, " according to her lawyer.

[Her attorney, Tom] Fox did not discuss the allegations but said there could be problems with statements Butler made to police last week based on her "long history of mental disorders."

GUILTY October 23 - Butler pleaded guilty today in a Tampa courtroom to all of the charges against her. The charges included contributing to the delinquency of a minor and two counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor. The boy was borderline mentally retarded. Prosecutors say there was no plea deal in the case and Butler could get nearly 30 years in prison when she is sentenced December 10.

Reminder: When another student came forward to report Butler, the student was ignored and later suffered a school suspension. School officials have since apologized for the suspension.

Tampa, FLORIDA

September 26, 2008 - John Ring, 37, a Memorial Middle School teacher assistant, was arrested and charged with soliciting sex and child porn from a 17-year-old girl.

The girl contacted police in March after Ring sent her a text message soliciting sex and asking to take pornographic pictures of her, according to police. He arranged to meet her at 9 p.m. Thursday outside a church on MacDill Avenue not far from his home, and when he showed up he was arrested, police said.

Ring started making sexual comments to the girl when she was 14. The suspect met the victim through her mother. The girl never attended Memorial.
----------------------
ONLINE RESOURCE: The Florida Department of Education Office of Professional Practices maintains an online record of discplinary actions against educators licenses dating back to Jan 1, 2005. You can search by name or browse through the any district (through the dropdown menu.) Tampa is in Hillsborough County.
----------------------
SCHOOL INFO: The school rates a 2 (with 10 being highest) at GreatSchools.net for some truly awful test scores. Student population is 53% Hispanic, 23% Black and 18% White. Students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch program at this school = 80%. Only 19% are English language learners.

Tampa, FLORIDA

September 24, 2008 - Wildalynn Harris, 23, a fourth grade teacher at Turner Elementary School, was arrested early Tuesday morning after police found her in a marijuana grow house.

She was arrested when police executed a search warrant at an apartment. They also arrested Shawn Crane, 24, who lives at the apartment. In the apartment, police found 16 marijuana plants and about 200 grams - or 7 ounces -of marijuana packaged for sale, authorities said.
Investigators also seized $6,225 cash, scales and packaging material.

Both were charged with cultivation of marijuana, possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Harris taught at Hunter's Green Elementary School in 2007-08.

Largo, FLORIDA

"Desperate and Horny Teachers of Florida" - Episode #75

September 25, 2008 - Alyson Perry-Jarvis, 36, a third-grade teacher at Southern Oaks Elementary School, was arrested Wednesday, accused of having a sexual relationship with a teenager. Their sexual relationship spanned July 2006 to August 2008, starting when the boy was 16.

Charged with one count of unlawful sexual activity with a minor, she is being held in Pinellas County Jail on $50,000 bond. The victim was not a student, but a neighbor of Perri-Jarvis.

The young man, now 18, reported Perry-Jarvis to the Sheriff's Office on Sept. 19.

"He realized what she was doing was wrong," sheriff's spokeswoman Cecilia Barreda said.

Perry-Jarvis is a graduate of Baptist-affiliated Samford University in Alabama. She and her husband have a son.
Full Name: Alyson Perry-Jarvis

Port St. Lucie, FLORIDA

Role Model #6831

September 25, 2008 - Lynne Wilson, 41, a Treasure Coast High School teacher, is facing drug and theft charges after police say she stole several items from a local Wal-Mart, returned them to get a gift card and then used the card to buy several items including a Tim McGraw CD and a couple packs of highlighters.

Police say Wilson also had a small clear bag of cocaine wrapped in a gum wrapper in her back pocket when police stopped her. Investigators also turned up a clear straw with cocaine residue on it in her back pocket.

Security noticed she took the items off store shelves just minutes before she "returned" them.

Tallahassee, FLORIDA

You sometimes think these cases will never come to court. Imagine how long it must seem to victims and their families.

Feb 17, 2007 - Gil Cancel-Comas, 29, a math teacher at Chiles High School until 2004 until his contract wasn't renewed, was arrested and is being held without bail on charges of kidnapping, lewd and lascivious conduct, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and custody interference.

In addition, Howard County authorities have issued a warrant for his arrest for kidnapping. Cancel-Comas made initial contact with a 13-year-old girl on the Internet and they had been chatting for about a year, authorities said. He transported the girl from Texas to Florida where she contacted her family. Cancel-Comas was arrested soon afterward.

ABC reports that police say that there is no indication that there was sexual contact between Cancel Comas and the girl.

School name from Tallahasee-Democrat.

"The circumstances in this case clearly sounds a wake-up alarm for parents," Sheriff Larry Campbell said in a written release. "This situation was born on the Internet, grew in chat room conversations and ended with a 29-year-old man driving five states to pick up a 13-year-old child."

Full Name: Gil Raimundo Cancel-Comas

TRIAL Sept 2, 2008 - Jury selection will begun today in the trial and testimony will begin Friday.

GUILTY VERDICT Sept. 6 - After a daylong trial, Cancel-Comas was convicted Friday of lewd and lascivious conduct, lewd and lascivious molestation, attempted lewd and lascivious battery, interference with child custody and contributing to the delinquency or dependency of a minor.

The jury deliberated 40 minutes. He will be sentenced October 15.

Vero Beach, FLORIDA

NEWSPAPER EDITORIAL

Does the punishment fit the crime?

September 8, 2008 - When 40-year-old Denise Harvey was recently sentenced for having sex with a teenage friend of her son’s to 30 years in prison, the newspaper of record in Florida, wondered if the punishment fit the crime.

Recent, roughly comparable cases suggest that Harvey’s punishment was grossly out of proportion.

When middle school teacher Debra Lafave was convicted for her ongoing sexual flings with a 14-year-old student in Hillsborough County, she received not one day of jail time. Instead, she got three years of house arrest and seven years probation. Though she subsequently violated that probation, she still has served no time behind bars.

In Martin County, South Fork High School teacher Shawn Trotter had sex with a 16-year-old female student three times on campus. He was sentenced to 10 years — a year less than the “deal” prosecutors offered to Harvey.

Without in any way excusing Harvey’s actions, it seems odd that two teachers — operating under the color of authority as school district employees — would receive more leniency than the Vero Beach woman.

While Lafave and Trotter lost their jobs, Harvey has effectively lost her life. If required to serve her full sentence, she would be 70 years old upon release.

Baseball coach testifies he told police about alleged sex between teen, mom (July 2, 2008)

Man stands by wife in sex case in Indian River (July 3, 2008)
"If I remotely thought she (Denise Harvey) cheated, I would have divorced" her, Vero Beach resident Charles Harvey said. [tt- He did not show up for sentencing.] The teen's sister walked in on them in his bed, according to trial testimony. The husband called the 16-year-old boy a liar. Denise Harvey's DNA was found on a condom at the boy's house.

Vero Beach woman guilty of sex with a minor (July 4, 2008)
Harvey was found guilty by a jury after 90 minutes of deliberation. The jury convicted her of having four sexual encounters at the home of the youth's stepfather. The fifth, the jury said, was in Denise Harvey's second-floor office in a bank building on U.S. 1 in Vero Beach.
----------------
TT - Useful to remember is that Shawn Trotter took a plea deal that sentenced him to 10 years in prison. Harvey was offerred a similar plea deal that would have meant 11 years in prison. She elected to go to trial instead.
tt- entry for Trotter.

UPDATE September 9 - Indian River County Circuit court case records are not online.

Although newspapers do not list the statutes, it is:
2008->Ch0794->Section%2005#0794.05">794.05 Unlawful sexual activity with certain minors.--
1) A person 24 years of age or older who engages in sexual activity with a person 16 or 17 years of age commits a felony of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. As used in this section, "sexual activity" means oral, anal, or vaginal penetration by, or union with, the sexual organ of another; however, sexual activity does not include an act done for a bona fide medical purpose.
. . .
(3) The victim's prior sexual conduct is not a relevant issue in a prosecution under this section.
--------------------------
It is a second degree felony that is punishable by up to 15 years. (Per count.) Notice the age of the victim. To prove the elements of the crime, State must prove the three elements beyond a reasonable doubt: Age of the victim. Age of the defendant and the activity.
--------------------------
RESOURCES:
From the Florida Department of Corrections: Overview of Florida's Sentencing Policies

From the Cobb Criminal Defense Law Firm: Felony Criminal Punishment Code Scoresheet.

Editor's Note: The actual Scoresheet is a form with boxes. This contains the actual text of the scoresheet without the boxes. The magic number is 44: Anyone scoring above 44 points "must" be sentenced to state prison under the Code.

However, the plea bargaining process can a) reduce the number of counts charged, b) have an agreement not to score certain items, c) substitute charges, d) reduce the actual count charged, or e) several other creative techniques can be used to get someone sentenced to a non-incarcerative sentence. Note the departure grounds under Rule 3.992(b), but also note the actual language of the "Sentence Computation" because someone charged with a felony can be sentenced to state prison even if the score fewer than 44 points. For this reason, felony cases are always very serious legal matters.

Scoresheets Received Compared with Admissions to the Department of Corrections by Judicial Circuit show that Scoresheets Received through September 1, 2007 for Offenders Sentenced between July 1, 2006 and June 30, 2007 from the 19th Circuit range from 89.6% for Supervised Admission to a high of 92.6% for those Prison Admissions.

tt - Rather than editorialize about the "unfairness of the sentence," it would be helpful if newspapers educated their readers so that they are aware that plea bargains are admissions of guilt, or, in the case of no contest pleas, the acceptance of guilt. In itself, that may be seen as remorse. (Remorse is somewhat essential. We've seen cases where the defendant, despite a guilty plea, refuses to acknowledge remorse and the judge refused the plea bargain.)

Plea bargains spare the victim from testifying. Plea bargains invariably include a provision that the defendant will not appeal the sentence. This spares the victim endless appeals and possible retrials. Those are major considerations for the prosecution and the court. And the victim or their family.

It is lazy journalism to editorialize about the "unfairness of a sentence" without referring to the actual sentences given in Florida in each county. It is irresponsible journalism to try to create an issue when none exists. The law is clear. The jury verdict was clear and the penalties are spelled out in the Criminal Code. She took her chances in a court of law and lost.

She should have picked another state, a different county, another prosecutor or another courtroom.

St. Petersburg, FLORIDA

Six years in prison and lifetime supervised probation.

August 16, 2008 - Werner Bloch, 41, a teacher at the Admiral Farragut Academy, was sentenced to six years in prison and lifetime supervised probation having child pornography on his home computer. Federal prosecutor said agents found 16,000 images of child pornography on Bloch's home computer.

Tampa Tribune: (August 15) Bloch was arrested in 2007 after agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement found him as part of a nationwide investigation of commercial child pornography Web sites.

The Web site that agents targeted was called "Home Collection" and sold monthly memberships for $79.95 that allowed patrons to access more than a dozen Web sites containing images and videos of child pornography. Bloch was caught ordering a subscription to the "Boys Say Go" Web site, according to his plea agreement. That site had images of prepubescent boys engaged in sexual activities with one another and adult men.

U.S. District Judge Susan Bucklew said Bloch's actions were "despicable" but that he deserved the lower sentence, partly because of the two experts' testimony that he is unlikely to offend again. "There is a need to protect the public," she said. The judge also noted that the child pornography involved real children who were victimized.

She also Bucklew said she didn't buy Bloch's assertion that he didn't take the job to have a pool of kids. There was some connection, she said, between Bloch's chosen career and his interest in child pornography. She said she didn't know which came first.

Bloch's therapist testified at the sentencing.

Bloch's therapist, Robert Whitford, testified that Bloch has obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety and depression. Whitford said Bloch is a pedophile who has not had improper contact with children.

"It really is an extraordinary case in that he was there 14 years and there is no evidence of any contact," Whitford said. "There was never any overtures toward a kid. That's remarkable."
Asked by Bucklew how he knew that, Whitford backed away from the statement. "I don't know if he did or not."

Child Pornography and Educators
TT - List sentenced for child pornography.
TT - List guilty but not yet sentenced for child pornography.

New Port Richey, FLORIDA

August 14, 2008 - Joel Cupp, 29, a teacher at Trinity Oaks Elementary School, was arrested and faces faces three counts of online solicitation and one count of lewd and lascivious exhibition, all third-degree felonies, for an Internet solicitation.

Cupp exposed himself multiple times over a web cam to the "children." He believed he was talking to three teenage girls.
Full Name: Joel Matthew Cupp
Pasco County
Fifth Judicial Circuit
---------------
PRESS RELEASE: Florida Attorney General Press Release (dated Aug 14, 2008)

The investigation was initiated by the Citrus County Sheriff's Office which requested assistance from the CyberCrime Unit when the investigators determined Cupp, 29, was located in Pasco County. The investigation was further coordinated once the investigators realized they were all chatting with the same suspect.

Cupp is the second school teacher arrested by the CyberCrime Task Force this month.

The case involving the chats with the CyberCrime investigator is still under investigation, but could result in similar charges.
---------------
ONLINE RESOURCE: The Florida Department of Education maintains a database of disciplinary actions taken against teacher licenses since January 2006. The site is: myfloridateacher.com
You can search for actions by last name or by district. (Use the dropdown menu to browse through the actions taken in the district.)

Reminder: Not all disciplinary actions will be found on the database because many negotiated settlements include non-disclosure.

North Port, FLORIDA

August 7, 2008 - Ronald C. Barche, an ROTC teacher at North Port High School, was arrested after a 16-year-old victim and her parents contacted them on Sunday to report that the child received inappropriate text messages from Barche.

He was arrested on charges of use of computer service/electronic device to seduce/solicit a child. Barche is 47.

According to police records, the girl, a North Port High student, told investigators that she and Barche routinely exchanged text messages over their cell phones. But the messages turned sexual last week when the girl reportedly sent Barche a nude photo via cell phone.

DOH.

New Port Richey, FLORIDA

Three children in the van. She admitted to taking Oxycodone, Prozac and three other painkillers and anti-anxiety drugs, reports said.

August 2, 2008 - Tina Adams, 46, a teacher in Pasco County, was arrested and charged with with child neglect and endangerment and driving under the influence. When she was stopped, they found three children in the van.

After a deputy signalled her to pull over, she continued on for a mile sometimes swerving, and then stopped in the middle lane. As she tried to get out, she fell to the ground.

The van rolled back toward the patrol car before the deputy was able to engage the emergency brake, according to reports.

Three children in the back seat were crying and told investigators they were afraid they would get in an accident "because Mommy almost hit cars and drove into the grass middle," according to reports.

Adams admitted to taking Oxycodone, Prozac and three other painkillers and anti-anxiety drugs, reports said.
Full Name: Tina Rametta Adams
Pasco County
----------------------
ONLINE RESOURCE: You can check on Discipline against Educator Licenses at myfloridateacher.com Search here To browse through a district, leave the name blank and choose the district.

Clearwater, FLORIDA

July 31, 2008 - Aaron J. Stewart, 28, was set to teach at Clearwater Middle School this fall and who has worked at various schools in the Pinellas County School district, was arrested on charges of child pornography possession.

Investigators discovered Stewart's possession of child pornography during an undercover internet investigation that identified known images of child pornography and traced the files back to Stewart's computer. A search warrant was executed at Stewart's Clearwater home and his computer was seized, along with additional computer equipment. Stewart admitted to knowingly possessing the images identified during the undercover investigation, many of which appeared to be of children as young as seven or eight years of age.
----------------------
Florida Attorney General's Office Press Release (dated July 31, 2008)
Stewart was booked into the Pinellas County Jail. He will be charged with one count of promoting the sexual performance of a child, a second-degree felony, and eight counts of possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony.

Jacksonville, FLORIDA

July 31, 2008 - Malachy Henry, 53, a Mandarin High School teacher, was sentenced on Thursday to spend 90 days in prison (TT -we're thinking they mean jail, not prison.) for simple battery on five female students. He was convicted of inappropriately touching five teenage girls.

At his sentencing hearing, Henry didn’t admit to do anything to the girls. [sic]

"She said so, and they just took the kid's word and the teachers are thrown under the road so to speak," Henry said in court.

In addition to spending 90 days in prison, Henry will also have to go to three months of treatment.

Four other charges are still pending against Henry from other girls who said Henry also touched them inappropriately and made sexual comments.
Duval County
--------------------------------
ONLINE RESOURCE - You can search for disciplinary actions against teachers in Florida online at Myfloridateacher.com Search by name or just browse the district actions. These are recent Duval County disciplinary actions.

Sarasota, FLORIDA

Convicted felon taught first grade for a year on a counterfeit teaching certificate.

July 9, 2008 - Susan Bell, 51, a first grade teacher at Suncoast School for Innovative Studies, was arrested and charged with identity theft, fraud and using a counterfeit teaching certificate.

Bell used another woman's teaching certificate to win a job at the Suncoast School for Innovative Studies, a charter school where she taught for about a year before she was outed. Bell then falsified a resume and took a job at the Brickhouse Academy in November, according to reports.
Full Name: Susan Davidson Bell

Sarasota Herald-Tribune (July 10) Police say 2 schools hired felon to teach

"It's not the first time she's done something like this," said Detective Jack Carter.

Bell has been charged at least nine other times with fraud and larceny. In fact, she was convicted in 2002 after she gave Sarasota County School District officials forged recommendation letters and a phony teaching certificate when she applied for a job at Opportunity High School.

They didn't hire her.

TT - A little frightening. She could have been a sex offender. And it makes you wonder what kind of background checks they do at those schools that don't include fingerprints that surely would have identified her.

St. Petersburg, FLORIDA

NO CHARGE.
July 26, 2008 - Prosecutors will not pursue criminal charges against Snieszko.

April 30, 2008 - Darren Snieszko, 25, a Gibbs High School science teacher was arrested on charges that he engaged in inappropriate behavior with students. He was charged with interfering with custody. Police say he encouraged a 16-year-old girl attending Gibbs to go on what he called a field trip to Lowry Park Zoo alone with him.
News Channel 8 has a great arrest photo.

St. Petersburg Police Department spokesman Bill Proffitt characterized the outing as a date. The girl and her mother went to the police station on April 11 to complain. Another female student at the school also is claiming Snieszko took her on a trip, but Snieszko has not been charged in that incident.

The student said Snieszko sent a her a variety of romantic messages using MySpace, cell phone text messages and instant email messages, according to a police report.
-------------
Comment at news story: "AT what point are we going to FIRE the person in charge of the school system?"
-------------
NO CHARGES July 26 - Prosecutors will not pursue criminal charges. School officials began an investigation that found Snieszko didn't have any sexual contact with the girls, but that he became too close to them by taking them to the movies, the zoo and Busch Gardens without informing their parents, said Valerie Brimm, a district administrator.

Brimm said one student said she and Snieszko kissed, though Snieszko told investigators that the student initiated it.

The school district was going to recommend that Snieszko be fired, but gave him the option of resigning. He quit July 1.

"He was very remorseful in saying that in hindsight he made some terrible decisions," Brimm said.

Prosecutors will not pursue the criminal charge because the girl's mother wanted to put the incident behind them, said prosecutor Beverly Andringa.