Jun 5, 2009 7:47 pm US/Central
Naperville Student Victim Separated From Attackers
NAPERVILLE, Ill. (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
Only the alleged victim of the mid-November, off-campus sexual assault that involved three Gregory Middle School students will remain at the school next year.
In a letter e-mailed to parents Friday afternoon, Indian Prairie School District 204 Superintendent Stephen Daeschner announced that the parents of the lone accused attacker left at Gregory have requested that their child be transferred to another school, and that he has approved the 11-year-old boy's transfer to Still Middle School for a minimum of two years.
"Still Middle School's principal next year is a previous administrator from Gregory who is familiar to the student involved and her understanding of the situation will be of benefit during this transition," Daeschner wrote. "She will work with her team to continue to follow the school's comprehensive plan that addresses creating a safe and secure learning environment where all students can succeed.
"With two new schools opening in the district next year, the Still school community will change," Daeschner wrote. "Many new students will walk through the school's doors for the first time. The new school community can be assured that Still Middle School will continue to be a place where students are cared for and encouraged to do their very best."
This announcement comes with one day of school left, and just three days before District 204's board was slated to approve a policy change borne of this assault and the controversy that has stirred around it since it occurred almost seven months ago.
That controversy raged around a situation that had the 11-year-old alleged victim of the off-campus sexual assault still attending the same school as his accused attackers — two boys, ages 11 and 12, who are facing felony charges of sexual assault and sexual abuse stemming from the incident.
In late February, the 12-year-old boy transferred out of Gregory and into Lincoln Junior High School in neighboring Naperville School District 203.
But the 11-year-old accused attacker continues to attend Gregory, as does the 11-year-old boy he's accused of sexually assaulting. And that 11-year-old accused attacker was also charged with misdemeanor battery due to an alleged dispute between he and the alleged victim — a dispute that purportedly occurred after the original assault, but on school grounds.
The alleged victim's parents, who could not be reached for comment for this story, have urged District 204 officials to remove the remaining accused attacker from Gregory. They've argued that the district has always had the authority to do so, even though the assault didn't occur on school property, and even though the accused have not been convicted.
And many in the community have voiced their support for the family during contentious and, at times, out of control District 204 board meetings.
Throughout the controversy, District 204 officials, who insisted they couldn't discipline the accused attacker or force him to transfer to another school, emphasized the steps taken to ensure the safety of Gregory students, and to prevent the two boys from coming into contact during the school day. The district also noted that the terms of a civil no contact order that were agreed upon by both families — the alleged victim's and the accused attacker's — didn't expressly state whether the accused attacker should or shouldn't attend Gregory. Rather, it only outlined the conditions for their separation — conditions the district contended it had and could continue to meet.
But, at the same time District 204 officials emphasized these points, the district's board debated changing district policy in response to the situation.
The proposed policy states that "regardless of the location of the conduct, a student who has been charged, convicted, pled guilty or determined delinquent, in a court of law in connection with a violent felony against another student assigned to the same attendance (center) shall be assigned to another school within the district for a period of time determined by the administration on a case-by-case basis, if the administration finds that the interests of any student or the school require such reassignment."
During its May 4 meeting, the board indicated it would adopt those changes during its meeting on Monday.
However, the published agenda for this meeting does not call for the board to act on this measure.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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