Green Forest, ARKANSAS

May 25, 2007 - The board recommended that two teachers not be rehired. Both teachers have been on suspension for some time, but no reason was given. The first resigned after the recommendation, the second, fourth-grade teacher Laina Smith, is requesting a board hearing.

Smith was arrested last October, accused of failing to protect a victim. The charges were dismissed.

She is the wife of Scott Allen Smith, 38, who was charged in September with rape for alleged sexual relations with a girl under the age of 14. He pleaded guilty to a reduced charge to first-degree sexual assault and second-degree sexual assault. He was was sentenced to 30 years in prison. "According to Detective Robert Bartos, an ongoing investigation revealed that Laina Smith had knowledge of the abuse rendered by her husband, and failed to report it."