WELLINGTON, Fla. — Investigative documents obtained by WPTV appear to show that some staff members at Palm Beach Central High School may have known about the alleged sexual assault of a 15-year-old student months before her own parents did.
The girl's family wants five high-ranking school officials, including the principal, held responsible, claiming that if they had properly reported the incident, it could have spared their daughter "a lot of anguish and trauma."
Principal Darren Edgecomb, 58, assistant principal Daniel Snider, 49, assistant principal Nereyda Cayado De Garcia, 57, teacher Scott Houchins, 53, and school behavioral therapist Priscilla Carter, 55, were arrested Monday on charges of failure to report sexual abuse.
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The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office first launched its investigation on Aug. 20, 2021, when the parents of the 15-year-old girl contacted law enforcement, saying their daughter had "possibly been sexually battered."
According to a 2021 incident report obtained by WPTV, the girl told a sheriff's office detective that her parents had dropped her and a friend off at Lake Worth Beach around 9 a.m. on April 2, 2021.
That's where the teen said she was sexually assaulted by a 15-year-old boy.
However, the incident was not reported to law enforcement until more than four months later, on Aug. 19, 2021, the investigative documents show.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office investigation revealed that months before the girl's parents learned about the alleged sexual assault, a friend of the teen wrote a letter and gave it to Houchins, a chorus teacher, on June 16, 2021, saying the girl was sexually assaulted and suicidal, and that "many anxiety and panic attacks were caused by this leading to self-harm."
According to the 2021 incident report, the letter stated the girl "had been 'sexually abused' but did not indicate by whom or how."
The girl's friend asked Houchins "to ensure it was given to the appropriate person."
Houchins said "he gave the letter to someone in the guidance office, but couldn't remember who."
That same day, Carter, a school behavioral therapist at Palm Beach Central High School, called the 15-year-old girl to the office, where she was evaluated. It was "determined that she was not a risk to herself and did not need to be Baker Acted," the report said.
Carter did not ask the girl about the alleged sexual assault, only about her suicidal thoughts.
"She told the counselor she was fine, even though she was, 'cutting,'" the incident report stated.
Carter called Edgecomb later on June 16, saying a letter was left in a school counselor's mailbox that outlined the 15-year-old girl's "thoughts of suicide and cutting."
"[Carter] did not say anything about the sexual assault mentioned in the letter," the report said.
Carter’s arrest report stated she contacted the girl’s mother about what happened but did not mention the sexual assault referenced in the letter.
Two months later, on Aug. 16, 2021, the 15-year-old girl told her friend in chorus class about the Lake Worth Beach incident. That friend then reported the information to assistant principal Snider, who then told Edgecomb.
One day later, on Aug. 17, the girl was called to Edgecomb's office and provided a written statement. The 15-year-old boy involved gave his written statement on Aug. 19.
The girl's parents told a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office investigator they were made aware of the incident on Aug. 17, 2021 — more than four months after the alleged sexual assault and two months after Houchins first received the letter from the teen's friend — and met with Edgecomb two days later.
According to the incident report, Edgecomb "advised them they were responsible for contacting DCF and law enforcement."
The parents said they wanted to pursue criminal charges and contacted law enforcement.
A Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office detective spoke to the girl's father, who said he "had many concerns with the way this incident was handled at the school by school personnel," the report stated.
Under state law,all school employees are considered mandatory reporters. That means they have an obligation to report suspicions of child abuse, neglect, and abandonment, including sexual abuse.
According to the report, the father said his daughter "was having difficulty coping with this situation, and he was not sure they wanted to continue with the investigation for the sake of her mental well-being."
The girl told a sheriff's office investigator that, following the April 2 incident, "she was very depressed and contemplated harming herself."
At an Aug. 19 meeting between the girl's parents, Edgecomb and assistant principal Cayado De Garcia, Edgecomb said "he conducted his own investigation into the assault" and "he did not contact law enforcement, nor DCF, regarding the assault because he felt that a sexual assault didn't occur, based on his investigation," according to the report.
When the girl's parents asked why the assault wasn't reported to law enforcement, Cayado De Garcia said they wanted to have the girl's parents report the assault, "and that since there was no indication that [the 15-year-old girl] wasn't safe, then there was no need for them to report it."
Edgecomb added the boy's "interpretation of the events was different (and therefore the principal didn't feel the need to report it)."
The incident report said the girl's father believed the school personnel were "negligent" in the case, and "had school personnel reported, as required, his daughter could have been spared a lot of anguish and trauma."
Ultimately, the girl's father told a PBSO detective in October 2021 that he did not want to pursue criminal charges against the boy, "as he does not want this matter dragged out in the legal system which could potentially inhibit the progress [his daughter] is making."
The lewd and lascivious molestation case was officially closed on Oct. 18, 2021, even though evidence "corroborated the allegations" against the 15-year-old boy, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said.
At an unknown later date, the girl's father contacted the PBSO detective again and said he wanted to generate a new criminal case because he felt the staff at Palm Beach Central High School was "criminally negligent in their Mandatory Reporting of the incident," the report said.
All of the suspects posted bail and were released from jail Tuesday.
WPTV has learned that four of the five employees arrested have been employed with the School District of Palm Beach County for more than 20 years. All have been reassigned to positions away from students.
The school district announced Thursday that Reggie Myers, the retired former principal at Park Vista Community High School, will serve as the interim principal of Palm Beach Central High School.