A High-Profile Example of Why Organizations Should Isolate Accused Offenders

The high-profile case of the Loudon teenager convicted of two sexual assaults on school grounds has a new chapter.  At his initial sentencing the court ordered that he register as a sex offender when he reaches age 18. Because the prosecution had not provided proper notice of the request, the judge scheduled a new hearing on that portion of the sentence. At that hearing, the judge rescinded the registration order, apparently convinced by the argument that 15-year-olds do stupid things that should not necessarily follow them for the rest of their lives.

This sentence, of course, will not be the end of the saga, as the parents of at least one victim is planning a lawsuit against the school system. According to news reports, the teenager assaulted a student at his school in May of 2021. The criminal case proceeded somewhat slowly, as criminal cases tend to do, and the school system for some unexplained reason decided not to suspend him in the interim. Instead, school authorities transferred him to another high school, where he apparently assaulted yet another student.

These sort of incidents are the reason that I always recommend that organizations facing claims of abuse always, always isolate the alleged offender. Any time you make a mandated report, you need to suspend the staff member or student at issue. Whether you suspend a staff member with pay or continue to provide alternative services to a student is within your discretion. You should always, however, isolate that person until an investigation has cleared him or her. It sounds harsh, and in practice it may be unfair. Unfortunately, you have no choice as the alternative is to leave other potential victims at risk.