Judge, juries clear 3 Leavenworth officials of failing to report suspected abuse
Three officials with the Leavenworth School District have been found not guilty of failing to report suspected child abuse involving a former teacher who is now serving a more than 10-year prison sentence in the Kansas Department of Corrections.
During a bench trial on Monday, Leavenworth County Judge Gerald R. Kuckelman found Amy Sloan, the district’s executive director of human resources and support services, not guilty of three misdemeanor counts.
In two separate trials in February, juries found both Alyssa O’Neal and Kelsey Stimatze not guilty of two misdemeanor counts. The jury in O’Neal’s trial could not agree on a verdict on a third misdemeanor charge, and prosecutors told a judge last week they would not retry the case and dismissed the charge.
Former Henry Leavenworth Elementary School teacher Jerome Riscovallez, 55, pleaded no contest and was found guilty in September of two counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. Each count involved three victims, for a total of six victims. prosecutors said.
As part of a plea agreement, one misdemeanor count of criminal restraint and four misdemeanor counts of battery were dismissed.
In October, a Leavenworth County judge sentenced Riscovallez to just over 10 years in prison. Kansas Department of Corrections records show his earliest possible release date is October 2033.
Prosecutors had alleged that Sloan, as well as Henry Leavenworth Elementary’s principal Stimatze and assistant principal O’Neal, had reason to suspect last year that the children had been harmed but didn’t make a report.
Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson said in a statement that they are grateful to those who serve on juries and respect the verdicts they reach.
“Based on the time juries took to deliberate, our conversations with some jurors following their decisions, and the fact that one count was hung, we recognize that these decisions were not easy and appreciate the time and care jurors gave to these matters,” Thompson said.
Thompson said his office also took the cases seriously, filing charges only after careful review of the evidence and applicable law.
“Mandatory reporting laws are critically important because they are designed to ensure concerns about potential abuse are brought forward promptly to protect children,” Thompson said.
While such cases are uncommon, Thompson said they believe it was important to present them to a jury to decide.
Thompson said their thoughts remain with the victims and their families.
