Anyone who comes into close contact with children or adolescents should be closely monitored. Our children are a precious gift we must be careful with them.

I think you're right. Every time you turn around there's a headline about that.

Mohegan Lake, New York, teacher Stephanie A. Gross, 24, is charged with having sexual contact with a 16-year-old male student. Gross was a social studies teacher at Lakeland High School. She has been charged with third-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a minor after an officer saw her and the boy in her parked car behind a restaurant. Police have not identified the boy. Gross told police said that she and the student went to New York City to see a concert but couldn’t get in because the boy was underage. They walked around the city before heading back and stopped at the restaurant parking lot where police found Gross straddling the boy and kissing him. Both were fully clothed. Students say she was always very flirty with the male students and had a reputation for wanting to be one of the crowd, especially with the boys. I found it interesting that parents are beginning to realize that their sons could be a victim of sexual abuse just as much as their daughters: “Sixteen-year-olds can look like men, but they are still only 16,” said parent Lali George. “Lots of times people have a false sense of security because they have sons, thinking they’re going to be safe, but you have to be just as careful,” said parent Cathy Volpe. “There is no double-standard anymore. The same way you’re appalled if it’s your daughter, you’re appalled if it’s your son.”

Scarsdale High School art teacher arrested on child porn charge WHITE PLAINS - As Scarsdale High School students filed into school yesterday for the first day of classes, one of the school's art teachers was appearing before a federal judge to face a charge of possessing child pornography. Federal agents arrested Allen Julier, 54, of Carmel at his Crafts Road home Tuesday and searched the computer in his home office. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents found more than 100 images of child pornography and more than 10 videos of illegal material, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in White Plains by ICE Special Agent Steven Cerutti. Julier, who has taught at Scarsdale High School since 1986 and is a member of the school's fine- arts department, was placed on administrative leave by the school district yesterday, Schools Superintendent Michael V. McGill said. "At this point, so far, he is being paid," McGill said. "We're obviously very concerned. We will do whatever is necessary to cooperate with legal authorities." McGill said a federal agent went to the high school yesterday to inform the principal of Julier's arrest. The agent did not ask to see any computer Julier used at the school, the superintendent said. "We have not had any indication of any difficulty with him in the past," McGill said. "Basically, we know no details about the whole situation." Liz Gruber, president of the high school's PTA, said she had not heard about the arrest and declined to comment. According to the criminal complaint, Julier admitted to federal agents that he downloaded and viewed child pornography on his home computer, including through paid Web sites. The complaint does not say how federal agents came to believe Julier had accessed child pornography. Julier was released on $50,000 bond following a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge George Yanthis. He would face as much as five years in prison if convicted. Julier declined to comment on the case when contacted at his home yesterday afternoon. Scarsdale teacher jailed after child-porn plea February 2, 2008 Scarsdale High School teacher Allen Julier slumped in his chair when he heard a judge say he would have to sit in jail for the next three months as he waits to be sentenced for having 100 photos and 10 videos of child pornography on a computer in his Carmel home. Julier unknotted the blue tie he wore to plead guilty yesterday and removed his belt. He surrendered the items to the two deputy U.S. Marshals who would escort him from the White Plains courtroom downstairs and into a van headed for the Westchester County jail. Julier already had surrendered his teaching license to the state Department of Education, a necessary part of his guilty plea. Julier turned to a friend who had come to court and offered a wan military salute. Then the marshals led him through the prisoners exit door, his 27-year teaching career in tatters behind him and the prospect of a long prison term ahead. He faces up to 10 years in prison when Judge Kenneth Karas sentences him in U.S. District Court in May. Sentencing guidelines probably will call for no more than 63 months, but Karas reminded Julier several times that he is not bound by the guidelines. Before Julier pleaded guilty, Karas ran through the standard list of questions designed to determine whether a defendant is competent to enter a guilty plea. He asked Julier, 55, how he was feeling. "About as good as one could expect under the circumstances," Julier replied. Julier was arrested Sept. 4 at his home on Crafts Road by federal agents from the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They found the illegal videos and images on his computer. Julier was expecting to begin his 22nd year in the fine arts department at Scarsdale High School the next day. But he didn't teach a day there this school year. He has been suspended with pay since his arrest. Schools Superintendent Michael V. McGill did not return calls yesterday seeking comment on Julier's status. Julier made only a brief statement in court detailing what he had done. "I downloaded images from the Internet that contained child pornography," he said. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Skotko said agents found 100 images and 10 videos. Had the case gone to trial, she said, prosecutors would have built a case on witness testimony, evidence from Julier's computer and Julier's own statements to agents when they raided his home. Julier's lawyer, Victor Grossman, said the crime was "an aberration," and that in 27 years as a teacher Julier had never behaved inappropriately toward any of his students. After the hearing, Grossman said Julier's struggles with depression led to the crime. "I think that in the course of everyone's life there are factors that cause a depression," Grossman said, "a depression which leads to behaviors that are otherwise regrettable but should be viewed as a small segment of a very productive life and career." Child porn lands former Scarsdale teacher in prison May 3, 2008 Nancy Epstein rushed from the elevator toward Allen Julier's lawyer, Victor Grossman, as he stood outside the courtroom where the Scarsdale High School teacher had just been sentenced for possessing child pornography. She clasped his hand and asked if she was on time. "It's over," Grossman said. "It's not good." He told her Julier was going to prison. "No, no," cried Epstein, who dated Julier for two years. "They can't do that. Don't they know who he is, what kind of person he is?" U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas in White Plains read the more than two dozen letters of support from fellow teachers, administrators, friends, and former students of Julier. The letters spoke of his skill as a teacher, commitment as a friend and dedication as a son. He heard Grossman's pleas for leniency that cited Julier's depression brought on by a series of losses: his marriage, his relationship with Epstein, the deterioration and eventual death of his ailing, elderly mother. But the 500 videos and 100 pictures of child porn - some of children younger than 12 - that investigators found on the computer in Julier's Carmel home and the fact that he downloaded the illegal material for two years from pay Web sites necessitated prison, the judge said. Karas sentenced Julier to 51 months in prison. "The crime here was just too severe. It lasted too long," the judge said. "It inflicted harm." Julier, 55, was "shocked and stunned" by the judge's sentence, Grossman said afterwards. Julier huddled with his lawyer for a few minutes before slowly rising and heading toward the prisoners door in the courtroom. One of the half-dozen Scarsdale teachers and staff who attended the sentencing yelled out, "We love you, Allen. Nothing has changed." Julier waved to them and smiled. The sentence was at the lower end of the 51 to 63 months sentencing guidelines range Julier agreed to when he pleaded guilty in February. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna M. Skotko asked Karas yesterday to sentence Julier within that range. Still, Julier hoped to avoid prison, saying he wanted to continue the psychiatric treatment he began after his arrest in September by federal agents from the Bureau of Immigration, Customs and Enforcement. "I cannot excuse my past behavior," he said before he was sentenced. "Instead, I can understand it to avoid repetition." Julier surrendered his teaching license when he pleaded guilty. He has not taught at Scarsdale High School this school year. His arrest came the day before classes were to begin in what would have been his 27th year at the school where he has taught courses that included photography and industrial arts. Scarsdale Schools Superintendent Michael McGill declined to comment yesterday on Julier's sentencing. Julier said he ventured from online adult pornography to illegal child pornography while trying to escape "my feeling of emotional pain." The victims in the videos and images seemed at the time to be part of a fantasy world, he said. "Therefore I didn't think real children were being harmed," he said. The victims were real, Karas said. "Every time somebody downloads child pornography," the judge said, "it perpetrates the gross exploitation of a vulnerable group of people - children."

Yes as well as the ones that work in day care facilities & nursing homes as well. Think about it would you want your mother or grandmother who maybe can't get around much or fend for themselves being taken care of by someone who just got out of prison for rape in another state or county? Because its easy for someone to lie & get a cna lic. or a janitors job at a nursing home & be with another group of trusting & vurnable family members that maybe could'nt scream for help or tell someone that something like that is going on. The schools & nursing homes both I think need to check references alot better, they have a moral obligation to our precious family members.

Of course the education system should monitor teachers. We also need to be a little more sensible in what we call "sexual predation." A lot of these cases of teacher misconduct ought to result in the teacher being fired, and nothing more.

How would you recommend? Searching their homes before they are hired? While the idea is good, the legality of it may be a bit tough - what you'd be doing is saying "Oh, you want to be a teacher? - you must be a criminal" I think male teachers nowadays are already being 'pegged' as pedophiles, just because they teach children. That is sad to me. While there ARE numerous examples of teachers behaving inappropriately - by no means (in my opinion) should potential employees' civil rights be violated. Perhaps the answer is MUCH stricter penalties for crimes against children. Such as life in prison - or even the death penalty.

Well... if the 16 year-old enjoyed himself... that's not really sexual predatorship. I think maybe a broader recognition and study of what makes people predators is in order. Rather than an all-out lynch mob.

D.A.: Ex- teacher sent illegal e-mails to teen KENT - Former John F. Kennedy High School teacher William R. Menchen, charged with having an illicit relationship with a then-15-year-old student, was given a chance last month to put his legal troubles behind him. But days after Menchen accepted a plea deal from Putnam prosecutors, sheriff's investigators learned that the 34-year-old man was alleged to have violated an order of protection by e-mailing the girl he first met when she was a student at the Catholic high school in Somers. The allegation that Menchen is still trying to maintain a relationship with the underage girl -and the resulting new charge of second-degree criminal contempt -means the deal he was offered could be pulled off the table, Putnam County District Attorney Adam Levy said yesterday. "He was promised three years' probation and a five-year protective order if he behaved himself, but the promise is no longer guaranteed," said Levy, who took office Jan. 1. "He has now subjected himself to increased penalty on the previous charges as well as what happens" on the new charges. Charged in October with three misdemeanor counts of child endangerment, two of second-degree unlawful imprisonment and one of third-degree sexual abuse, Menchen was offered this deal Jan. 15 in Kent Town Court: Plead guilty to one count of child endangerment and surrender his teaching license in exchange for the promised sentence. Menchen, a former Patterson resident who now lives in Nassau, Renssalaer County, agreed and was told to return to court in March for sentencing, Levy said. Two days later, on Jan. 17, Putnam County sheriff's investigators learned of the allegations that Menchen had sent what they described as alarming e-mails to the Putnam County teenager. Though not familiar with Menchen's case, Michele Galietta, a professor of forensic psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said yesterday the type of repeated actions he's accused of can be attributed to several factors. "For some people, it has to do with an inability to see boundaries. They're very immature," Galietta said yesterday. "Others may have some disorder where they truly believe they're in love with the person. That's more akin to a mental illness or delusion. When someone has been caught and caught again, either they're fairly anti-social or fairly obsessive." On Jan. 30, Investigators Vincent Martin and Nicholas DePerno Jr. arrested Menchen. At his appearance Tuesday in Kent Town Court, prosecutors filed a fourth child-endangerment charge against him while Justice Joseph Esposito, who issued the order of protection in the fall, sent Menchen to the county jail without bail. He remained there last night pending his March 18 court appearance. Menchen's attorney, Andrew Quinn of White Plains, has declined comment on the new charges. JFK administrators forced Menchen, a gym teacher who coached girls volleyball and boys baseball at the high school, to resign at the start of the 2006-07 school year after learning of inappropriate telephone and e-mail conversations he had with a female student. It's unclear whether it was the same girl with whom police charge he was physically involved. Sheriff's investigators said that after Menchen left Kennedy, he kept in contact with the 15-year-old girl without her parents' permission and arranged several meetings last summer in Kent. During those encounters, police said, the relationship turned physical and Menchen touched her sexually. Police said he befriended the girl at the start of the 2005-06 school year. Levy said that the victim agreed to the plea. "Everything that's done has been with the assistance of the Sheriff's Office and the consent of the victim and her family," he said. Yorktown resident Anne Ring, whose daughter Ellen is a senior at Kennedy, felt sorry for the girl in the case and her family. "It's a very difficult situation for a parent to be in," she said. "I feel for the parents; I really do." Menchen was hired as a substitute teacher at Rye Neck High School and worked there for 12 days at the beginning of the school year before Rye Neck officials learned of his arrest and fired him. Rye Neck Schools Superintendent Peter Mustich said that Kennedy's athletic director had given Menchen a positive recommendation. But JFK's president, the Rev. Stephen Norton, later said that his athletic director might not have had complete information about the reasons behind Menchen's departure. Had the public school asked him, Norton later said, he would have been more forthcoming. Mahopac resident Peter Norden, whose older son Graig graduated from JFK in 2002, has his own take on what happened with Menchen. "I'm upset about it, but I also feel there's a lot of Catholic-bashing that you don't find in other religions," said Norden, who praised the school and said his son still has emotional ties to JFK. "Not in any school would I condone that type of action," he said of the allegations. "Let's put it this way: I'm glad I don't have a daughter down there."

Sure. But the question is how close is too close? I mean when exactly does someone cross the line into invasion of privacy? Considering not only teachers but police, fire fighters, doctors, paramedics, nurses, child care workers, etc all work with children or have a possibility of being in contact with children. Keeping this in mind, again I ask, how close is too close? I would definitely want my child to be safe no matter who they're with but the reality is that unless you watch someone so close that it infringes their rights and freedoms how would one go about monitoring the actions of such people? It would be ideal if we lived in a society where we didn't have to worry but that's not reality. At the same time though, you have to have faith in people whether you like it or not that they won't act in these ways. We trust our children to other people all the time and we can only hope for the best. Richard Shines

I actually have a funny story about an old English teacher that relates to the topic. He used to sit all the pretty girls at the front of the class, and dropped his pencil a few times so he could look at their legs when they wore skirts in the summer. He used to sit all us boys at the back, so we always noticed him do it. So I told the story recently to a girl that has him as her current teacher, and she told me that this teacher is actually her dad's friend. I died a little inside. But aside from that, I don't think that they are all in the education system and I don't think that is WHY they go into teaching. It's perhaps just a fetish that is SPAWNED from the career.

I am a teacher and we are monitored (at least in California we are). The thing is that an adult having inappropriate contact with a child doesn't make national news unless it's a teacher, a priest, a pediatrician or some other trusted profession. What we need to do is make the system of reporting the incidents more child friendly. We need to make sure children know that it's not their fault and they can tell somebody.

Just because all cows eat grass it is wrong to assume that all grass is eaten by cows. It was the occupation of these two that was newsworthy, not their actions alone.

Yes, I do. But they do not. Wherever there are children, there should be safety nets in place and monitoring

Mary Kay Le Tourneau anyone?http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/psychology/marykay_letourneau/1.html Yes. I can't believe how lax some of the schools are. When I was in HS we had a whopping 4 incidents for such a small school. Two teachers dated students while they were students and married them when they graduated (at the time, the law stated that 2 years had to pass before a former student could marry a teacher). Both teachers kept their jobs and no disciplinary action was taken. One of those teachers had done the exact same thing 5 years before (short marriage obviously). He was slapped on the wrist the first time, but not the second. Another teacher got caught with a student on his desk. Sad thing was, his wife was also a teacher in the same school system and his daughter went to the school where he got busted. He was fired. The last was a coach/teacher who liked to tell the cheerleaders that they looked slutty and he had been reported numerous times for inappropriate behavior. He went too far with one, he groped and attempted to restrain her--she got away and he went to jail. He whined that his sentence was too harsh rather than accept what he did was dead wrong.

Everybody works with kids. Even people who don't, do know someone with children or sees them walking around in the shops or whatever, and therefore have contact with children. If we have to monitor teachers 24/7, then the same should go for police, fire fighters, doctors, paramedics, nurses, and child care workers. And if we want to go that far, then we might as well include checkout chicks (who see kids with their parents every day) and babysitters as well. It would be easier just to monitor everyone while you're at it. Its just a small percentage of people who ruin it for the majority. Teachers have a lot on their plates already without extra paperwork etc to fill out.

25-year-old Long Island teacher was busted for having sex with a 16-year-old student in a late-night rendezvous in their high school parking lot, cops said Thursday. Heather Kennedy, who teaches math at Wantagh High School, was released on $35,000 bond after she was arraigned in a Hempstead courtroom on charges of rape and endangering the welfare of a child. She was arrested as she returned home late Wednesday, a day after the boy's father reported the alleged sex crime against his son, who attends the school. "I've known Heather for a long time and it's certainly out of character for her to be accused of such a crime," said Kennedy's lawyer, Steven Zimmer. Nassau County cops said Kennedy seduced the teen after he picked her up March 18 at her grandmother's Massapequa home, where she lives, and went cruising for several hours. The pair then stopped at the darkened high school parking lot, talked some more and then had sex, said Detective Lt. Richard Zito. Things unraveled as the boy's father grew worried when the teen blew curfew - and didn't answer his cell phone because his battery died. The teen finally called his father from the teacher's phone. "The son made up a story about where he was," Zito said, but the father didn't believe him and later got him to confess. Zito said the father had reservations at first about whether to prosecute and waited a week. The Wantagh Union Free School District said Kennedy was put on paid leave. "The teacher has been immediately reassigned out of the classroom to her home pending the outcome of the investigation," said Deborah Casper, a district spokeswoman. Kennedy, who has taught at the school for three years, has no prior arrests or past disciplinary problems. She was "well thought of by school administrators," Zito said. "We are still dealing with it ourselves," said a woman who answered the door at Kennedy's Argyle Place home.

N.Y. High School Coach Arrested For Voyeurism Cops: Byram Hills Teacher Filmed Girls For 3 Years, Wanted 'Upskirt' Images For Own Gratification ARMONK, N.Y. ― A suburban teacher and coach is charged with using a hidden camera to videotape young women. Police say the teacher took the video at Byram Hills High School. Cops are continuing to investigate exactly what the teacher was doing and why. It's a tawdry scandal in tony Armonk, where gym teacher and baseball coach Quentin Lindsey is accused of secretly videotaping female students – apparently for his own sexual gratification. One recent Byram Hills graduate said he couldn't believe it when he heard the news. "He never showed any signs of being creepy in that kind of way," Mike Bottiglieri said. "He was very respectful towards girls and this and that, but, it's a big shocker. New Castle Police arrested Lindsey on Friday, and charged him with unlawful surveillance in the second degree. Cops say the hidden videotaping at Byram Hills had been going on for three years. Law enforcement sources tell CBS 2 HD Lindsey had purchased a small video camera which he hid in a backpack, having a cut a hole in the backpack for the lens of the camera. Then he would leave the backpack in various parts of the school where young women would congregate. The alleged goal was to obtain so-called "upskirt" pictures. In a criminal complaint, cops say Lindsey, "Did use an imagining device to surreptitiously record the sexual or other intimate parts under the clothing being worn by numerous female students." There was no answer at Lindsey's apartment in Sleepy Hollow. Neighbor Rob Baker – also a teacher – says the charge against Lindsey, if true, is a shocking breach of students' trust. "To take their trust and then abuse it, it's like the worst thing you could possibly ever do," Baker said. Late Monday, North Castle Police confiscated Lindsey's computer, as their investigation into his activities continues.

Teachers are monitored AND have background investigations when applying (in California at least). But most of the cases cited/reported are first time (caught) offenders and have given no proir indication of such thoughts or actions. If they have any history, they are denied. There is no way to know if they took the job to harm kids or if the desire/intent manifested itself later.

Having some experience teaching I will say this. Yes, the system should watch these teachers but, the parents need to watch their children also. A crimminal records check is required where I come from to work in the school system here. But, if there is no previous record then there is no warning.

GREENBURGH - A man named "Jim" arranged the backyard group-sex romp that ensnared a former Catholic school principal from Ossining, police say, and he may live near the home where the tryst took place. "I think we're going to grab grab 'Jim' very soon," Greenburgh Police Chief John Kapica said yesterday. Greenburgh police said they found three naked men having sex with one another on Sunday night in the backyard of 70 Abbeyville Lane in the Orchard Hill section of town. Kapica said the three men met on a Web site called Manhunt.net and arranged to meet on Abbeyville Lane. A neighbor who called 911 that night said he saw two men get out of a car, meet a third man and go behind the vacant house. Police arrested 31-year-old Francesco Autera of Thornwood and 41-year-old Gabriel De Jesus of Ossining, but the third man ran off, naked. Kapica said there is a "distinct possibility" that the third man, identified by the other two only as "Jim," lives in the neighborhood. "Someone knew the place was vacant," he said. "I think the third party arranged it." Until yesterday, De Jesus, a married father of three, was the principal of Sacred Heart School for the Arts, a Roman Catholic elementary school at 71 Sharpe Blvd. in Mount Vernon. He resigned yesterday at the request of Sacred Heart Church, according to a statement from the Archdiocese of New York. A letter about the situation is being sent home to the parents of Sacred Heart students. De Jesus served on the Ossining school board in the mid-1990s and last year tried unsuccessfully to return to the board. He had also been co-president of the Claremont Elementary School PTA. Kapica said Autera works in finance, but he had no other details about his job or marital status. Attempts to contact Autera were unsuccessful. De Jesus and Autera are facing charges of public lewdness and trespass, both misdemeanors, and disorderly conduct, a violation. Police do not believe the men had ever met before, and would not release photographs of the suspects. "These people have been humiliated enough," Kapica said. Yesterday, the police chief stressed the dangers of meeting strangers on the Internet, adding that the men's poor judgment would probably alter their lives forever. "They didn't use common sense," he said. "That's very, very unfortunate."

I've found that inappropriate contact happens with to some children/teens in their life, some is innocent and others, well, arent. Teachers are montiored but possibly not as much as they should be, it is too easy for them to start a relationship with a child or have their students hit on them (which I have seen many times). There really should be clear lines set out (about what is an appropriate way to act and what is not), and possibly, dress codes (which would make someone, no matter how close in age to the student, look older). Besides, I'd have to say doctors abuse their power just as much, but most people dont report it or notice it (such as unwanted breast exams).

Sexual predators are everywhere, even in places you wouldn't expect. I think any place where minors are around should be extremely monitored. Someone you'd least expect could try to creep their way in, trust me.

It does - that's why we know about these people you mentioned in your question. Should we do more? Most likely we should do more in some areas - the same or even a bit less perhaps in others.

A former teacher described as dedicated and caring by parents and colleagues said he was "anguished" as he was sentenced Thursday to 6 ½ years in prison for possessing pornographic images of children. Wearing orange jail scrubs, Michael Kelly Reiner, 48, of East Meadow, told U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Bianco in Central Islip federal court he spent the past two years in "deep introspection" following his arrest in September 2006. "I'm not sure I can adequately express the devastation I feel," Reiner said. "I feel like I've let down everybody." Reiner, a teacher at the Long Island School for the Gifted in Huntington Station for 18 years before he was fired following his arrest, pleaded guilty in March 2007 to one count of possession of child pornography. 569 porn images and 68 videos in Reiner's home computers and hard drives after he was stopped at the Canadian border with pornographic photos of children. Reiner's computer also had files describing cannibalism involving children, prosecutors said. Bianco dismissed arguments by Reiner's attorney, Ronald Schoenberg, that Reiner obtained images by accident and tried to delete them in 2003. The judge also described as "ridiculous" Schoenberg's contention that Reiner studied cannibalism to write a novel. The images -- including some depicting sex between adults and children under 5 years old -- were "extremely graphic," Bianco said. Bianco could have sentenced Reiner to 8 years and a month behind bars. He handed out the minimum sentence, under federal guidelines, after saying Reiner seemed remorseful. Earlier, Schoenberg read excerpts from letters written by parents of Reiner's students, who praised his teaching skills and asked for mercy. Schoenberg, whose son was one of Reiner's former students, said Reiner was "one of the most giving individuals that has ever been a teacher." Seven people attended the sentencing in support of Reiner. They declined to comment.

I assume the 16 year old was male. If that is the case, I seriously doubt it hurt the boy or was unwanted. I had a hot teacher in high-school and if that happened to me at 16 I'd have thought I was in heaven :-) As for the porn - if he didn't do anything I'm not sure how you could monitor him. You can't just search his personal computer or look at the pictures under that mattress. I share your disgust at the thought but even teachers (the huge majority of whom are fine, caring people) have rights. +5

I'd suggest Home-Schooling... but lets face it, then the problem becomes parents and guardians... All adults probably require continuous supervision and monitoring... especially those who are ever in the same room with others.