Redlands News Responds to AB 989
A San Diego legislator has introduced a bill intended to improve the reporting of student sexual abuse by teachers.
Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, D-San Diego. (Courtesy photo)
Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, introduced Assembly Bill 989 on Thursday, Feb. 21.
The bill would require every county office of education or school district to create a new position responsible for ensuring compliance with the state’s Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act. Agencies would also be required to create a toll-free number and website for people to submit complaints to that employee.
“Students are not being listened to and they don’t feel like they’re being believed — that is the common thread in these stories,” Gonzalez said in a news release. “This independent overseer will be a check at the school administration level, where there seems to be a problem.”
AB 989 was inspired by Loxie Gant, a former student at La Jolla High School who said she was sexually abused by a teacher. As reported by Voice of San Diego, Gant’s complaint of unwanted touching, as well as other students’ complaints over 13 years, were seemingly ignored by San Diego Unified, which said it has no records of complaints lodged with the school’s principal. Physics teacher Martin Teachworth retired in 2017.
It’s unknown how the bill might affect a new policy adopted by Redlands Unified School District following multiple sex abuse scandals in recent years.
Gonzalez was unaware of the issues in Redlands, according to a representative, but the district has paid out $30.2 million in a little over two years to settle civil suits stemming from district teachers sexually abusing students.
In December, Redlands Unified put into place measures intended to prevent further incidents or get them handled in a timely fashion.
Under California law, nearly everyone who works with children is legally required to report suspected child abuse. But in practice, the abuse often goes unreported and those who fail to do so are rarely prosecuted. Experts blame elements of school district culture, including a lack of follow-through on complaints and discipline, which Gonzalez’s bill, in theory, could address.
According to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, the state agency received 5,895 complaints of teacher misconduct in the 2017-18 school year, the highest number in at least a decade.
AB 989 may be heard in committee on March 24