Beauvoir Scandal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The U.S. Attorney's Office is involved, according to a very comforting letter received by Beauvoir families the other day. That means federal prosecutors and FBI agents. The Feds, Big Brother, G-Men. Assuming they were brought into the picture on time, they would be able to stop him from leaving US soil. If he did manage to flee the country, they would know. If he did what people suggest he did, they're looking for him wherever he may be, and eventually, they'll get him.

I know nothing about the investigation of this case outside of what has been reported publicly. That caveat said, the following is a civics lesson for those who may be unaware: The U.S. Attorney's Office has investigatory and prosecutorial authority over all D.C. cases because D.C. is not a state with its own judicial system. The fact that they are involved does not necessarily mean any federal investigatory agencies are involved. They could be, I certainly don't know. But the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office handles all MPD cases.

True, but in this case the FBI is also involved.

[Anonymous]

The head of the school at Beauvoir has done a heck of good job with this matter. I have been a B parent for nearly 10 straight years, and I could not be more proud to have my children attend. I can only imagine the stress to the administrators right now, of having such fire hydrant jobs. I have been kept thoroughly informed, and in this CYA government town, that's refreshing, honorable, and forthright.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The head of the school at Beauvoir has done a heck of good job with this matter. I have been a B parent for nearly 10 straight years, and I could not be more proud to have my children attend. I can only imagine the stress to the administrators right now, of having such fire hydrant jobs. I have been kept thoroughly informed, and in this CYA government town, that's refreshing, honorable, and forthright.

I can only think these un-real sounding accolades are written sarcastically to solicit a reaction (from a NON parent or from someone who really thinks Beauvoir did a crappy job).

[Anonymous]

It seems like it is only the non parents who think Beauvoir did a crappy job and frankly Beauvoir owes these families nothing. Its those of us who have or have had children at the school who really have a stake in this (beyond the gossip factor) and i think most of us are satisfied. Obviously there was a terrible failing on the part of the school, but I think in the aftermath they have behaved honorably.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It seems like it is only the non parents who think Beauvoir did a crappy job and frankly Beauvoir owes these families nothing. Its those of us who have or have had children at the school who really have a stake in this (beyond the gossip factor) and i think most of us are satisfied. Obviously there was a terrible failing on the part of the school, but I think in the aftermath they have behaved honorably.

Just out of curiousity how is it that only Beauvior parent's have a stake in this? Can you confirm all the pictures found of the child/children were all only Beauvior students? If you cannot confirm this as a fact then all parent's have a stake in this man being on the "run" as well as the fact that if he is in fact the person who took the photos then isn't it true Beauvioe would be responsible for letting him walk out the door. If he settles in another state or another country, then aren't other children at risk?

How is it that this is a Beauvior matter and not a community matter? If there were pictures of nude children found on a grocery store camera would it only be a matter for the grocery store? Seriously? Are you that naive to think that if the missing teacher committed the crime that he will not attempt it again?

I do not think Beauvior is at fault for possibly harboring a criminal, that can happen to anyone, but they would be guilty of letting him go in their poor handling of the matter.

[Anonymous]

I'll venture to guess no one, Beauvoir included, would have predicted the teacher would have gone into hiding. I guess it's reasonable to think now, duh! At the time, the decisions were made very quickly (that day), to protect the kids. They met, they put him on leave, they called the police. But I'll guess that they just did not, in their reactions, think that this person would flee town. If he had been brought in a few days later for questioning, no one would be looking at Beauvoir's reaction as poor. The fact that they acted immediately could even be commended. But once the teacher fled, all of a sudden Beauvoir's decision looks pretty poor.

[Anonymous]

11:10 poster here. I am reacting to everyone who says Beauvoir tried to hush it all up. I don't think any Beauvoir parent would think that. I also think Beauvoir is not a law enforcement agency. They got him out and called the police immediately, and informed the parents, including parents like myself whose child hasn't gone to beauvoir in years.

So they made the call that -- rather than have a cornered man contained in the school, and they had no idea how he would react or what he would do, and rather than have the police cart a teacher away in front of young children -- that they would get him out of there and protect the kids. Maybe in retrospect they should have locked him in the Beauvoir jail cell, but I can't blame them for the decision they made.

Any reason everyone isn't blaming the police for failing the community, as PP put it? Huh?

[Anonymous]

I am a parent at the school and am not all feeling they did such a great job. They are being advised by lawyers and a PR firm. Yes they have disclosed things but days later and only once approved by their lawyers. The police were NOT called immediately (otherwise they would have questioned him!). The Cathedral Police escorted him off the grounds. The real police were not called in when they should have been. Plus the school cleaned up the class room (destroying possible evidence!). And affected parents were not told until several days after the guy was canned and fled town.

While many may be interested in just the gossip, this is about the community. It could indeed have happened anywhere. It may be happening again for all we know as the guy is still AWOL (and likely reading these boards still). Pedophilia is not something that just goes away. It cannot be cured.

The people writing all the positive comments that the school has done such a great job and that they are so proud, or those even writing the negatives or not representing any majority view and frankly not any viewpoint but their own. Full stop. My view and my take is different. I am greatly disappointed. In the school, in the media and even in the police to get him though I know they are still trying.

[Anonymous]

Of course everybody posting is presenting their own view. Full stop. What makes you think that makes your opinion more valid than someone elses?

[Anonymous]

To PP: I never claimed my opinion was more valid! My point -- which was made in an un-snarky way I thought (unlike your posting) -- was that everyone is entitled to their own opinion and no one has been determined to be right or wrong. And then I stated mine. I did not make fun of those thinking one way or another. And I never professed that my opinion mattered more or less than anyone else's. If you read what I wrote that way, then I am sorry as my intention was to have everyone remember that these are a bunch of anonymous postings and only reflect the unknown author's opinion and not necessarily the truth, the majority, or anything but what they alone believe.

On that note, I think I will stop reading this for awhile. It is just too sad for me to see people get so defensive about the school, or about the teacher, or to spread more rumors or to hear people think that this doesn't matter to some in our (greater) community.

[Anonymous]

I am the 10-year Beauvoir parent and the one who posted that earlier message about how well I believe the school has handled the situation. I stand by what I said. "Full stop." If I had been in the headmistress's shoes that day the camera was discovered, I hope I would have had the presence of mind to do exactly what she did. As an employment attorney, I also add that her conduct is furthermore exactly what I would have advised any client to do, though she and Beauvoir are not and never have been clients of mine. Indeed, what the headmistress did was over and above what clients are required to do legally, as was the FBI background check on the man the school conducted before hiring him. The headmistress has acted with great poise and dignity, stoically enduring enormous heat, including from posters on this site.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the 10-year Beauvoir parent and the one who posted that earlier message about how well I believe the school has handled the situation. I stand by what I said. "Full stop." If I had been in the headmistress's shoes that day the camera was discovered, I hope I would have had the presence of mind to do exactly what she did. As an employment attorney, I also add that her conduct is furthermore exactly what I would have advised any client to do, though she and Beauvoir are not and never have been clients of mine. Indeed, what the headmistress did was over and above what clients are required to do legally, as was the FBI background check on the man the school conducted before hiring him. The headmistress has acted with great poise and dignity, stoically enduring enormous heat, including from posters on this site.

I am also an attorney. So you are telling me you wouldn't have advised her to call the police and ask if they could come over to the school immediately? The notion that they didn't have time to call the police is simply not credible. We are talking about children.

[Anonymous]

I would prefer to have 10:10, and DEFINITELY NOT 9:22 advising my headmaster at school, that is for sure.

[Anonymous]

They did call the police. But they got the guy out of there immediately, before the police arrived. I still think that was the right call. It wasn't that "they didn't have enough time." Its that they made the decision to secure the kids there by getting rid of him. I am an attorney as well and i think that would have been my advice. Yes, call the police but get the bum out of there so (a) there isn't an incident in range of the children, and (b) he can't communicate with or harm the children.

[Anonymous]

Is this thread actually going anywhere? Some people would have handled it one way. Some people would have handled it another way. Some people would prefer to have one anonymous lawyer advising the anonymous head of their anonymous school. Others, presumably, prefer the first anonymous lawyer. What we all have in common, of course, is that we didn't have to handle it, and can Monday-morning-quarterback to our hearts' content.

Can we be grown-ups and give it a rest now? If there's nothing new to say, there's nothing new to say.