Two assistant principals in California have been charged with felony child abuse after they failed to report sexual assaults committed by one student against three others.
The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office said Assistant Principals David Shenhan Yang and Natasha Harris were arrested Wednesday at Carter High School in Rialto, California.
“The Assistant Principals’ failure to report sexual assault on their campus erodes the trust that students and parents alike should have regarding the safety and protection of all the children in their care,” District Attorney Jason Anderson said in a statement. “Their failure as mandated reporters to notify law enforcement led to further victimization of two students, and the sexual assault of a third victim, which was preventable.”
California law requires school employees to report immediately to law enforcement any allegations of child abuse or neglect.
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Investigators looking into the case found that a student-victim reported sexual assault by a male student to Yang and Harris in September, according to CBS-LA. Two additional victims were found to be assaulted by the same male student. One victim reportedly told Yang and Harris about the assault in November, while the third victim did not tell school officials.
The Rialto Unified School District said in a statement obtained by CBS-LA that it will conduct an internal investigation and continue to assist local authorities with the case.
“The safety and well-being of students is our No. 1 priority,” said RUSD spokeswoman Syeda Jafri. “Accordingly, these allegations are taken with extreme seriousness.”
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In addition to the felony count of child abuse, both Yang and Harris also face two misdemeanor counts of failure of a mandated reporter to report child abuse or neglect. CBS-LA reported that both are being held on $150,000 bail and are scheduled to make their first court appearance Thursday.
