Alarming new study shows sex offenders are working with children and teachers are hushing it up

Daily Mail UK ^ | 12/17/10 | Daniel Bates

[Clint N. Suhks]

Convicted paedophiles are finding it easy to get jobs in (American) schools because teachers are failing to stop them and hushing up cases of abuse, an official report has found.

In nearly three-quarters of school abuse cases the offender already had a criminal record for paedophilia but was allowed to work there anyway.

Worryingly, more than half of the offenders went on to use their new positions to claim more victims than they had done before.

The report's authors say the figures are so high because teachers are hushing up cases by letting a sex offender resign quietly and move on somewhere else.

In some cases they even write them glowing letters of recommendation so they can get teaching jobs elsewhere.

Rep George Miller, Democrat, California had requested the probe and said it should leave parents 'very concerned'.

'My first reaction is just one of anger,' he said.

'I spent my entire life working with young children … and then to see that in fact with knowledge, a school official passed a convicted child abuser and molester on to another school system by covering up that information in the record. It's outrageous.

'These children were put in this unsafe position because adults in charge of their well-being failed to do their job,' said the outgoing chair of the House education committee.

'Parents have a right to believe that their children are safe in schools'.

The study was carried out by the General Accountability Office, which examines how effectively public funds are being used.

Its researchers looked into 15 sample cases of abuse in public and private schools between 2007 and 2009 where the offenders works as teachers, support staff, volunteers or contractors.

Of the 15, at least 11 were convicted sex offenders who had previously targeted children.

[SoftballMominVA]

This article makes no sense whatsoever. As a teacher in Virginia, I can tell you that every teacher, every assistant, every bus driver, every substitute, and even parent volunteers must go through a background check. Not to mention that as a teacher I have power to hire or fire or to even give a recomendation.

I have no doubt there are pedophiles in the school system. I also have no doubt there are pedophiles in churches, nurseries, pre-schools, gym, sport clubs, day camps, summer camps, tutors, after school care - where ever there are kids, there will be people that want to prey on them. This article exists only to inflame, not to give useful information or even reliable information.

[Clint N. Suhks]

I also have no doubt there are pedophiles in churches, nurseries, pre-schools, gym, sport clubs, day camps, summer camps, tutors, after school care -

Those are not publicly funded for the most part are they? Different standard... What threshold do you expect when an applicant checks "yes" for child abuser and is still hired? NEA cover-up IMHO.