Elkhart, INIDIANA

Time to update those old 1980s yearbooks.

March 12, 2008 -
Thomas Thornburg, 52, was arrested last month in Springfield, Illinois, for trying to solicit sex from a 12-year-old boy. The boy turned out to be a federal agent. He is charged with indecent solicitation of a child under the age of 13.

Thornburg was arrested for allegedly molesting at least two teens while teaching at Woodland Elementary School near Elkhart, Ind., in the 1980s. He was convicted in 1986 and was sentenced to five years in prison for child molestation. The allegations involved boys who were 13 and 14 years old. (He served 3 and a half years.)

At the time of his arrest last month, Thornburg worked as a manager of the McDonald’s in Springfield.

TT-Working at a McDonalds is a good job if you want to be around teenage boys.

SENTENCED October 28 - Thornburg was sentenced to 19 1/2 years in federal prison for solicitation and possession of child pornography.

Kokomo, INDIANA

Hindson was not an educator but a swim coach at a local school where he had a hidden camera in the girls' dressing room for ten years.

Feb 7, 2008 - When a police detective viewed videos taken from a computer the swim coach sold through eBay in 2006 to a buyer in Gastonia, N.C., the detecive found the source of the files.

"Upon viewing the videos, Det. Banush went to the girls swimming locker room at Kokomo High School's Memorial Gym and determined that the video discovered by [the computer purchaser] on her computer was in fact produced in that locker room in Memorial Gym," the search warrant affidavit states.

A search warrant was served Tuesday on the coach's residence. They seized 65 items. On Wednesday, school officials met with parents of both female and male students and confirmed an investigation was taking place, and that some children may have been taped undressing in the female locker room.

Brian D. Hindson, 40, was arrested today and is now in federal custody. An examination of an external hard drive of a computer in his home obtained during the search contained eight videos of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. The complaint does not allege that Hindson produced the videos.

Hindson also admitted to hiding video cameras in the locker rooms at Kokomo High School and Westfield High School.

The buyer of the computer told the FBI about finding the files in 2006 when she and her son turned on the computer. The FBI contacted the North Carolina detective on Tuesday.

This investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about the case should call the Kokomo Police Department at (765) 456-7248.

U.S. Department of Justice Press Release (Dated Feb 7, 2008)
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TT - Hindson has a blog at http://indianaswim.blogspot.com/ The description of which reads:

DISCLAIMER: Personal opinions by Coach Brian D. Hindson, you don't like what i write, don't read it, simply change the channel. No point in calling or emailing anyone about what I write, as now I am the renegade. FREEDOM!!!

Yeah.

Feb 8 - Hindson did not work for the school. He rented space from the school.

SENTENCED October 17 - Hindson was was sentenced today in Indianapolis to 400 months in prison on 11 counts of production of child pornography, four counts of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. He was ordered to serve a LIFETIME PERIOD OF SUPERVISED RELEASE.

Hindson pleaded guilty July 23, 2008.
The statement of facts established that during an approximately 10-year period, Hindson hid video cameras in locker rooms at Kokomo High School and Memorial Gym, and then secretly videotaped female teenage swimmers from his teams while they undressed.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Justice Press Release (dated October 17, 2008)

Indianapolis, INDIANA

May 15, 2008 - Sheila Vazquez, 37, a teacher at the Renaissance School, was arrested, accused of sexual impropriety with a 15-year-old male student.

Renaissance School is an alternative facility for about 200 students in Grades 6-12 who are either having disciplinary problems or considered at risk of dropping out.

According to a police report, the student told authorities Vasquez first had engaged in flirtatious behavior with him.

The two eventually concocted a plan, the student told police, for Vasquez to arrange to take the student on a special lunch outing that would be described to administrators as a reward for recent improvements in the boy's classroom performance. The two intended instead to go to the teacher's home for sex, the boy told police.

Court papers show the relationship came out earlier this month when the boy was approached about an end-of-the-year field trip to Kings Island. She is on paid administrative leave.

GUILTY PLEA & SENTENCING (Sorta) October 3 - Vasquez pleaded guilty to one count and was sentenced (sorta) to two years of home confinement.

She pleaded guilty this morning to one count in exchange for a maximum eight years in prison.

Prosecutors asked for at least four years in prison, but Court Commissioner Stan Kroh gave Vasquez two years in home detention, followed by four years on sex offender probation. She will have to register as a sex offender.Vasquez, Fishers, apologized for her conduct and asked for leniency. She has three young children.

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TT - There's a lesson here: Abuse someone else's child and then plea with a lowercase judge for leniency so you can take care of your own child. Where the heck is the justice for the victim or for his family in that??????

Especially when your read: "Vasquez arranged the trip by telling his foster parents that she was taking the student on a special lunch outing to reward him for recent improvements in classroom performance. She brought along a female student who stayed downstairs during the tryst, prosecutors said."

Rensselaer, INDIANA

September 23, 2008 - Rensselaer Central Middle School art teacher Elliott Zimmer, 27, stopped for speeding, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of a narcotic and possession of less than 30 grams of marijuana.

"His alcohol level was below the 0.08 legal limit (to drive), but with the signs of impairment and with marijuana possession, he was taken in," Chief Deputy Terry Risner of the Jasper County Sheriff's Department said.

At the traffic stop, Zimmer consented to a search of the vehicle, where a cigarette box with clear plastic protruding out the top was found in the center console of the vehicle.“The officer found the clear plastic contained a brownish-green leafy substance that the officer felt was marijuana,” Risner said. “There was admission from the suspect of smoking marijuana two hours prior to the traffic stop.”

The Jasper County Prosecutor’s Office is currently reviewing the arrest charges and an initial hearing has yet to be set

Risner said Zimmer was cooperative but refused a urinalysis test. He has been suspended by the school district.
Full Name: Elliott James Zimmer

Hammond, INDIANA

Band teacher is 41. She is in the eighth grade.

September 6, 2008 - James Ciammetti, 41, a band teacher at George Rogers Clark Middle School, was arrested for allegedly having sex with one of his 14-year-old students repeatedly at the school over a 10-month period.

He was charged Friday with five felonies -- two counts of child molesting, two counts of sexual misconduct with a minor and one count of child solicitation.

His alleged activities were discovered by the girl's father, who was using a computer program that tracks his children's activities on the family's computers.

Ciammetti and the girl had traded more than 1,100 e-mails, most of them sexual or obscene in nature, prosecutors said. He had been the girl's band teacher since sixth grade.

He was suspended WITHOUT pay because of the "seriousness of the situation."

The NeighborhoodStar (September 6) reports that Ciammetti "repeatedly had sex with a female student while she was 13 and 14 years old."

In an interview Sept. 3, the girl - an eighth-grader who has taken band classes with Ciammetti since sixth grade - said the two performed oral sex on one another and had sex in the band room and band storage room, according to an affidavit filed by Hammond police.

She said they had sex at least 10 times between April and the first day of this school year, with Ciammetti using a condom, police said.

Ciammetti "always told her that he loved her," the girl is quoted in court records as saying. He told the girl they would get married and have children together when they got older, according to court records.
Full Name: James Alan Ciammetti
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You can see his picture here.

Petersburg, INDIANA

September 2, 2008 - Luke Musselwhite, 26, a teacher at Pike Central High School who resigned just prior to the start of this school year, was arrested for disseminating harmful material to a girl at the school and contributing to the deliquency of a minor.

During October and November 2007, Musselwhite allegedly sent over 200 text messages to the 17-year-old Pike Central High School student. Several of the text messages sent to the female student were sexual in nature.
Full Name: Luke A. Musselwhite

POLICE WERE INVESTIGATING two Pike Central teachers for allegedly disseminating harmful material to students via text messaging. Police have not identified the other teacher.

In other news, an English and Bible Literature teacher who was also a football coach committed suicide at his Gibson County home at 5:20 a.m. Tuesday morning.

Pike Central schools released students early and canceled the school board meeting and sporting events Tuesday night after the death.

Free Education (sorta)

Only three states charge students for classroom textbooks. Indiana is one of them.

August 18, 2008 - A South Bend Tribune editorial, "State has duty to pay for school books," wants the state to pay for textbooks. They maintain that the "cost of textbooks most assuredly is part of the cost of public education and should be shared by all taxpayers." Indiana Code, enacted by the General Assembly, says that school systems may charge students to rent textbooks.

The cost can be very high.

Bremen Public Schools charges parents $87 for kindergarten books. Parents of fifth-graders pay $128. High school students’ families commonly are charged $150 or more. A family with several children can easily pay up to $500 just in book fees.

Only in 2007 did the legislature decide to fully fund books for students who receive free and reduced-price meals.

According to the Tribune, Indiana is one of only three states that doesn't provide textbooks in public schools. This, despite a 2004 Indian Supreme Court decision that struck down a $20 activities fee, that said,

“It is absurd to suggest that public schools may not charge for the services of a teacher, but may charge students a fee for things as essential to teaching and instruction as the services of a teacher, such as school buildings, maintenance, heating and cooling, electricity, or textbooks.”

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TT - They don't say what the other three states are.

Winchester, INDIANA

August 16, 2008 - School Board member Dana Cox, 68, was arrested August 2 in downtown Muncie, accused of soliciting a prostitute. Also arrested in that sting was Harold McGrath, a Nettle Creek English teacher. McGrath's resignation was accepted Wednesday by the Nettle Creek School Board.

On Tuesday night the Nettle Creek School Board voted 4-0 for a motion to ask Cox for his resignation also and censured him for his "alleged misconduct and the undue attention that it has brought to Randolph Central." Cox has served on the board 18 years.

See The Star Press: (August 6) School board member, teacher among those nabbed in sex sting
Harold Thomas McGrath, Jr., 61, was arrested for public indecency at McCulloch Park, and has taught since 1973 in Hagerstown for the Nettle Creek School Corp. The 11th grade English teacher has also worked with the student academic team, said Nettle Creek Supt. Joe Backmeyer.

McGrath was arrested after allegedly talking with and arranging sex with an male undercover officer, who reported he also saw McGrath fondling himself in public at the park.

Three other men were also arrested in the five-hour undercover prostitution sting in McCulloch Park and surrounding neighborhoods. McGrath was arrested after allegedly propositioning male undercover officers. Cox arrest stemmed from a purported dealing with a female undercover officer in the downtown area.

The park is listed in an "alternative lifestyles" publication as a location for male prostitution.

Rockport, INDIANA

CHARGES DISMISSED

Oct 4, 2007 -
Robert Ewing, 40, a South Spencer High School teacher, was arrested on theft, criminal confinement, and domestic battery charges for allegedly accosting his wife.

Ewing is a math and science teacher and boys and girls cross-country coach.

Full Name: Robert E. Ewing II

CHARGES DISMISSED - May 8, 2008
A motion to dismiss without prejudice was filed May 8, 2008 by Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Neil C. Thomas because:
1. The victim in said cause has refused to cooperate with the prosecution.
2. That there is no independent corraborative evidence which would allow the State of Indiana to go forward with the prosecution of the above-captioned case.
Filed in Vanderburgh Superior Court.

CHARGES DISMISSED August 19 - Charges against Ewing related to an incident with his estranged wife in an Evansville parking lot last year have been dismissed. (Evansmille Courier & Press)

Fishers, INDIANA

CASE DISMISSED

Story dated August 4, 2007 - Keith R. Lehocky, 42, a fourth-grade teacher at North Judson-San Pierre Liberty Elementary School teacher, was been charged with child molestation stemming from a party in February. Lehocky was arrested July 11.

The 11-year-old girl was attending a party with several other girls when it is alleged that Lehocky molested her. Source: Gary Post Tribune (Dated Aug 4.)

From the Noblesville Times: (Dated Jul 12) -

A court document states the girl pretended to be asleep so Lehocky would leave her alone. As she pretended to sleep, she said he pulled down the spaghetti strap to her top, exposing her breast.

During an interview March 5 at Chaucie’s Place child advocacy center, the girl said Lehocky laid down on the bed and began rubbing her chest and the front of her body.

The affidavit states the girl said Lehocky’s daughter, who was also in the room, told her father to get off of the girl.

The girl's mother took her daughter to a local fire station Feb. 25 for help and was placed in contact with police.

See Monticello Herald Journal article. (Dated Jul 17)

CASE DISMISSED August 3, 2008 - With a trial date in the case looming this month, Hamilton County prosecutors came to Circuit Judge Judith Proffitt with a request for a continuance on July 17. Lehocky's attorney Steven Holt objected to the motion - an argument supported by Proffitt, who dismissed the case.

Despite Proffitt's dismissal, state attorneys maintain the right to refile charges against Lehocky - a move that could not be confirmed or denied this week by representatives in the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office.

CASE DISMISSED

Mishawaka, INDIANA

July 31, 2008 - Penn High School girls rugby coach Steven C. Collins, 27, pleaded guilty July 17 to two counts of sexual misconduct with a minor, Class B felonies.

Collins was arrested in March 2007 for allegedly having an inappropriate relationship with a 15-year-old rugby club member after a school counselor learned of the relationship and notified the principal. The principal contacted the student's parents and Child Protective Services.

The Penn girls rugby club is not a sanctioned sport at Penn and Collins is not a school employee. He will be sentenced Sept. 25

Griffin, INDIANA

While we're on a roll on principals here, we get a chance to bring back one of our personal favorites. Complete with update.

Principal and wife arrested for battery. On each other, this time. Banham resigns.

Dec 30, 2006 - Michael Banham, 36, principal of Calumet High School was arrested for chasing his wife and shooting at her. He is charged with three counts of battery, three counts of criminal recklessness and one count of intimidation. A passenger in his car was charged with public intoxication.

UPDATE: Jan 2, 2007 - Banham was suspended by the Lake Ridge school system.

UPDATE: Jan 8, 2007 - The wife, Nichole Banham, is an exotic dancer at the Deja Vu strip club. "Nichole was performing under the name Mariah at a strip club in 2000 when Banham, then a Hammond High English teacher, walked into her life." The incident occurred on her 29th birthday.

He is scheduled to appear Friday to answer to felony battery, intimidation and reckless driving charges. Chicago Sun-Times wonders, "Did principal shoot at his stripper wife?"

TT - Makes you wonder how she fit in at school functions.

UPDATE Jan 9 - Banham has been ordered to stay away from the school and students. He has been suspended. Still some parents wondered why the restraining orders of his recent past did not raise red flags.

The estranged wife of Banham said last week that the principal had anxiety and anger management issues and that the two had an "extreme" history that involved drugs, double personalities, abuse, and psychiatric treatment. Banham and his attorney declined to comment on those allegations.

[School district attorney Monica J] Conrad declined to confirm rumors that Banham might be getting a buy-out from the district.

ARRESTED Feb 17- Banham and his wife were both arrested for battery. Some drug paraphernalia also was in the home, neither claimed it. Child Protective Services took custody of the child.

RESIGNED Apr 10 - Banham formally resigned as principal of Calumet High School Monday just hours before a public hearing to discuss his firing.

THE ABSOLUTE LATEST July 25, 2008 - In a story about the resignation of the third principal of Calumet High School, (they've hired five principals in seven years) the newspaper mentions that Michael Banham is serving a 10-year probation for dealing in cocaine.

He got the fabulous deal on the felony charge in April after pleading guilty to to a charge of dealing cocaine to a Gary police informant. Branham testified against Gary resident Richard Kelly in Kelly's trial last year. Kelly was one of two other defendants in the same case who faced possession and dealing drug charges. Kelly was given 18 years.

TT - Banham lost his teaching license, which in any other state would be a given, but it's Indiana. Lake Ridge School District (Griffin) is rated 3 at GreatSchools.net. And if you want the lowdown on Gary, Indiana, check this entry out. Our mistake. Thank you.

Decatur, INDIANA

Fire him or, no?
Gee, maybe we should think about this..... hmmmm

July 25, 2008 - Chris Hakes, Vice Principal at a Decatur school for the past eight years, in charge of disciplining the students, was arrested for shoplifting a jump drive at WalMart. On Wednesday, he pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor theft. He was sentenced to a year of probation, ordered to undergo counseling and stay out of every WalMart for a year.

Residents are wondering if he is a role model for the students at Bellmont Middle School.

Hakes is the second area educator this month to plead guilty to a crime. Last week, former Wayne High School Assistant Principal Kristopher Sennett pleaded guilty to two counts of child seduction, admitting to having had sex with a student this year. He will be sentenced in September. Entry

Ft. Wayne, INDIANA

"I feel so grown up. i can't believe I am only 17!."
This is just so thrilling for our steely-eyed vice principal.

Feb 27, 2008 - Kristopher Sennett, 36, assistant principal at Ft. Wayne High School, was arrested and faces two counts of child seduction. He was suspended with pay last week after admitting to police he was "having a relationship" with a 17-year old student.

The relationship came to light after the girl's parents found e-mails and a Valentine's Day card from Sennett. He previously was a teacher for several years at Indianapolis' New Beginnings Alternative High School
Full Name: Kristopher James Sennett

E-mail transcripts (PDF) released by Ft. Wayne Community Schools
TT - Parents pay taxes for this.

From Indiana News Center: According to state law, child seduction occurs when a person at least 18 years old and in a supervisory role, such as school district worker, has sex or engages in sexual acts with a child who is at least 16 but younger than 18.

RESTRAINING ORDER Feb 29 - The parent of the child filed a restraining order against Sennett. It's active for two years, unless Sennett argues to the judge it should be overturned.

FIRED March 24 - Sennett was fired after a 20-second vote by the school board. He will be in court in April.

GUILTY PLEA July 19 - Sennett pleaded guilty to two counts of child seduction, both Class D felonies. He will have to register as a sex offender under Indiana law for the next 10 years. He will be sentenced September 26.

Speaking so softly he was often told to repeat himself, Sennett admitted to having sex with the girl as well as engaging in deviate sexual conduct. Because he pleaded guilty without the benefit of a plea agreement, Sennett can appeal any sentence imposed by Surbeck.
Sennett’s pregnant wife accompanied him to court.

Gary, INDIANA

June 12, 2008 - Donald Pennington, 60, a teacher at Bailly Middle School, pleaded guilty to fondling two girls who were 12 and 13 years old at the time.

In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dropped more serious felony charges of child molesting and sexual misconduct with a minor. The maximum he will face when he is sentenced July 23 will be three years in prison.
-------------------- RESEARCH --------------------
TT - Not surprisingly for Gary, Indiana, the school rates a 1 at GreatSchools.net. for these kinds of test scores:

English Language Scores - 8th Grade
State = 69% at or above proficiency (proficiency = at or above grade level)
This School = 23%

Math Scores - 8th Grade
State = 74% at or above proficiency (proficiency = at or above grade level)
This School = 18%

Students are 97% black, 1% Hispanic and 1% other. 78% are eligible for a free lunch.

TT entry for another Gary, Indiana school with online resource link to schools in Indiana.
Link for Bailly Middle School. The 2007-08 Avg Teacher Salary: $58,332
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SENTENCED July 23 - Pennington was sentenced to 30 months in prison. [The story was from a news release from the Lake County Prosecutor's Office. However, there are no online press releases at their site.]

Post-Tribune: (July 24) At the sentencing, the district attorney presented a letter from the mother of one of the girls, which the judge read aloud in court. The woman said her daughter is receiving counseling to help her heal from the emotional scars caused by the crime. The family moved to another state because the child was teased.

UPPERCASE Lake Superior Court Judge Thomas Stefaniak Jr. told Pennington, "For what you did you deserve to remain a convicted felon," Stefaniak said, barring any chance that Pennington's felony conviction will be reduced to a misdemeanor when he gets out of prison.

Fort Wayne, INDIANA

Parent is currently under house arrest and scheduled to stand trial in August, could get up to three years in prison.

June 23, 2008 - A parent, Samantha O'Neal, 35, faces a felony charge of "educational neglect" because her fifth-grade son missed 10 days of school last year, six of them unexcused. He was tardy 28 times and, according to his teacher, sometimes arrived dirty, smelling of urine and without his homework.

Fort Wayne Community Schools board member Kevin Brown believes a conviction could give local teachers the ammunition they need to get habitually absent students into class. “There's something on the horizon that we're going to see a dynamic change in education in the state,” Brown said . “If you see this parent prosecuted, then the floodgates are going to open.”

List of educational neglect cases at the bottom of the article.
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TT - It's probation for an Indiana teacher who performed oral sex on a student, but a felony for a parent with a truant child? It's a suspended sentence for an Indiana teacher who had sexual contact with three boys in Indiana but a mother is threatened with three years?

The Indiana Department of Education has snapshot information about any school or school district in the state, including Fort Wayne Community Schools. For this district, the attendance rate in 2006-2007 was 95.2% for students.

In Colorado, they go one better in their School Accountability Reports and show the teachers' average days absent. In one school we looked up, the teachers' average days absent was 5.8% which works out, based on a 180-day school year to be 10.4 days a year. If you want to browse Colorado schools, you can access the information here. (In the individual school report, look on page 2, bottom right.)

It isn't as if Indiana doesn't track teacher attendance rates. It's a part of the Annual Performance Objectives to improve teacher attendance rates. link They just choose not to report the results publicly along with the school information.

Before prosecuting a mother for her son's 10 days absence, someone should ask what the teachers' attendance rates are in the Fort Wayne Community Schools. And how much money is spent on substitute teachers to cover for them. If I were her lawyer, I would demand to know those figures.

South Bend, INDIANA

June 17, 2008 - The South Bend School Board approved the retirement of a local teacher who is under investigation for downloading child pornography.

Julian Penny, a part-time math teacher at Clay High School, is currently under investigation by the FBI. The complaint against Penny was filed in district court in Grand Rapids.
Full Name: Julian Randall Penny

Part-time Clay High teacher investigated for child porn possession (Jun 13)
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SCHOOL INFO

The school rates a 2 at GreatSchools.net
The district rates a 3 at GreatSchools.net They have 21,222 students in 37 schools.
For this, they pay $10,827 per pupil (state average is $8,216)
Students eligible for free or reduced lunch program = 61%

Clay High School website describes the school as the "Visual & Performing Arts Magnet School for the South Bend Community School Corporation."

Gary, INDIANA

Another Poverty Pit school district.

June 11, 2008 - Liduvina Espinosa, 26, a Lake Ridge Schools substitute teacher, was arrested on charges of intimidation and battery after a 16-year-old girl and her father said the woman assaulted them with pepper spray, then waved a knife around threatening to kill them because she believed the teen had egged her car.

Espinoza denied being in the driveway, but police found her shoe on the property. Police also recovered a knife and pepper spray.
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-------------------- RESEARCH --------------------
WE FOUND: Lake Ridge School District is rated 3 (with 10 being the highest) at GreatSchools.net There are 2251 students in 5 schools in the district. While the total spending in the state averages $8,216 per student, this district spends $10,932. Some 66% of the students in the district are eligible for free lunch.

TT Opinion: Many of the districts with the poorest scores and high poverty rates get extra funding that doesn't seem to make a lot of difference. In fact, you might argue that the money might serve as an incentive to achieve poor results if only for the extra bucks. If it wasn't for the the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, that requires states to act on schools that repeatedly fail to teach, it's doubtful that the worst states would intervene in such schools.

The single high school in this district rates a 2 (with 10 being the highest) at GreatSchools. School data from the Indiana Department of Education is compiled in snapshot profiles of schools in the city of Gary and school districts. Calumet High School here. NCLB report.

The school district serves students within the unincorporated sections of the Calumet Township and portions of Gary. Also from Wikipedia:

The city of Gary has had a checkered history when it comes to education. As a result, test scores have fallen well below the national average of late. In response, multiple charter schools have been founded throughout the city as an alternative to the public schools. Since that time student performance has improved and the Gary Community School Corporation has built new elementary schools.

ONLINE RESOURCE: Find a snapshot of any school in Indiana by name or number, school district, or city. Here

Terre Haute, INDIANA

May 23, 2008 - Tommy Thornton, 37, a machines trade teacher and varsity boys basketball coach at West Vigo High School, was arrested, accused of sexual misconduct with a 17-year-old female student. He was charged with child seduction, class-D felony, attempted child seduction, class-D felony and public indecency, a class-A misdemeanor.

Thornton is accused of exposing himself to a 17-year-old female student as well as fondling and rubbing up against her on separate occasions, as well as asking her to “pinky promise” not to tell anyone about the instances and other graphic discussions.

An attorney pleaded not guilty on Thornton's behalf. Thornton verbally resigned from West Vigo High School on April 24, with an email resignation on April 28. A trial date of Oct 28th has been scheduled.

NEW TRIAL DATE October 29 - The jury trial is scheduled for April 21.

Evansville, INDIANA

"We were all relieved to learn this situation was a hoax, but very disturbed to learn it was perpetuated by someone who was working to be a teacher," Sheriff Williams said. "A person who worked with the very children she terrorized."

April 18, 2008 - Jennifer Fritz, 23, a student teacher at Perry Heights Middle School, has been arrested and charged with false informing and harassment.

Fritz allegedly sent an anonymous email to the school principal, saying she had overheard a group of guys planning an attack on the school last week. During an investigation it was found the email account was fake. Detectives linked the email to Fritz, who they say admitted to sending the email to avoid teaching.

Both charges are misdemeanors.

The threat prompted a lockdown and increased security at the school. Fritz is a student at the University of Southern Indiana.
Full Name: Jennifer Kay Fritz