Subscribe to TruGMusicGroup.com
Follow @TruGProductions on Twitter
Like us on Facebook!
GREAT FALLS — A Great Falls Elementary School teacher was arrested Thursday night and charged with criminal sexual conduct with a minor between 11-14 years of age and committing a lewd act upon a child under 16, officials say.
GREAT FALLS — A Great Falls Elementary School teacher was arrested Thursday night and charged with criminal sexual conduct with a minor between 11-14 years of age and committing a lewd act upon a child under 16, officials say.
Great Falls Police Chief Steven Rice confirmed that Richard Jayson Jones, 47, is held without bond at the Chester County Detention Center. He taught art at Great Falls Elementary School. He was a nominee for the school district's "Teacher of the Year."
Police began investigating Jones early last month when a 16-year-old told police that he had been molested by Jones for roughly four years, Rice said. He gave officials specific details of the prior incidents.
Arrest warrants show that Jones sexually assaulted the boy on several occasions between 2007 and 2010. Officials with the State Law Enforcement Division confirmed that the incidents did not occur on school grounds.
Rice thought it best to bring in help from SLED, a neutral agency, he said, considering the sensitive nature of the allegations and the fact that the victim didn't come forward until now.
"SLED has the resources, they have the proper investigators and they have the time," Rice said.
Because several Fairfield County and Chester County children attend school in Great Falls, Rice said officials feared more victims would come forward and file similar complaints once word of the allegations against Jones became public.
"Nobody else has come," Rice said. "His name has been going around for a month now. It wasn’t hidden anyway."
If more victims do come forward, Rice said SLED will handle any follow-ups.
The Herald is not naming a family member of the victim who said she feared there was “a high probability” that there were many more victims because of Jones’ job in the school district.
The resident didn’t find out the victim had been molested until he decided to go to police, she said.
“I’m really proud of this victim for standing up,” she said.
“(The victim) is doing really well,” she said. “It really empowered this person. He took back some of his power by doing this.”
Realizing that coming forward with the allegations would stop Jones from getting “won’t get his hands on another kid was another determining factor for the victim coming forward,” she said. “He had been through it and he didn’t want any other kids to be in that boat.”
Now, she implores parents in the community to talk to their children if they were ever Jones’ students.
“See what they know,” she said. “If there’s been any actions or conduct that made them feel uncomfortable. I really think that all of us in the community need to stand up and make sure that all the bad guys aren’t getting to our children.”
She said the victim had been one of Jones’ students at one point in time.
“We’re really relieved that he’s off the streets and not going to be able to get his hands off anybody else,” she said.
Last month, Kathryn Richardson, spokeswoman with the State Law Enforcement Division, confirmed that SLED was investigating a Great Falls teacher but would not give details on what they were investigating or confirm the teacher’s identity.
Administrators at Great Falls Elementary School also would not comment on an investigation into Jones at the time.
After SLED was called in to help, they took over most of the investigation, Rice said, before finally making an arrest Thursday after receiving information that Jones had gone down to Anderson.
Agents made arrangements to pick up Jones and transport him back to Chester County, Rice said.
Rice said that Jones has no prior arrests or convictions.
Assistant Sixth Circuit Solicitor Chris Taylor confirmed that the Sixth Circuit Solicitor's Office will prosecute the case.
Check back for more details.
Police began investigating Jones early last month when a 16-year-old told police that he had been molested by Jones for roughly four years, Rice said. He gave officials specific details of the prior incidents.
Arrest warrants show that Jones sexually assaulted the boy on several occasions between 2007 and 2010. Officials with the State Law Enforcement Division confirmed that the incidents did not occur on school grounds.
Rice thought it best to bring in help from SLED, a neutral agency, he said, considering the sensitive nature of the allegations and the fact that the victim didn't come forward until now.
"SLED has the resources, they have the proper investigators and they have the time," Rice said.
Because several Fairfield County and Chester County children attend school in Great Falls, Rice said officials feared more victims would come forward and file similar complaints once word of the allegations against Jones became public.
"Nobody else has come," Rice said. "His name has been going around for a month now. It wasn’t hidden anyway."
If more victims do come forward, Rice said SLED will handle any follow-ups.
The Herald is not naming a family member of the victim who said she feared there was “a high probability” that there were many more victims because of Jones’ job in the school district.
The resident didn’t find out the victim had been molested until he decided to go to police, she said.
“I’m really proud of this victim for standing up,” she said.
“(The victim) is doing really well,” she said. “It really empowered this person. He took back some of his power by doing this.”
Realizing that coming forward with the allegations would stop Jones from getting “won’t get his hands on another kid was another determining factor for the victim coming forward,” she said. “He had been through it and he didn’t want any other kids to be in that boat.”
Now, she implores parents in the community to talk to their children if they were ever Jones’ students.
“See what they know,” she said. “If there’s been any actions or conduct that made them feel uncomfortable. I really think that all of us in the community need to stand up and make sure that all the bad guys aren’t getting to our children.”
She said the victim had been one of Jones’ students at one point in time.
“We’re really relieved that he’s off the streets and not going to be able to get his hands off anybody else,” she said.
Last month, Kathryn Richardson, spokeswoman with the State Law Enforcement Division, confirmed that SLED was investigating a Great Falls teacher but would not give details on what they were investigating or confirm the teacher’s identity.
Administrators at Great Falls Elementary School also would not comment on an investigation into Jones at the time.
After SLED was called in to help, they took over most of the investigation, Rice said, before finally making an arrest Thursday after receiving information that Jones had gone down to Anderson.
Agents made arrangements to pick up Jones and transport him back to Chester County, Rice said.
Rice said that Jones has no prior arrests or convictions.
Assistant Sixth Circuit Solicitor Chris Taylor confirmed that the Sixth Circuit Solicitor's Office will prosecute the case.
Check back for more details.
0 comments:
Post a Comment