While if you’ve read a few of these posts (or just haven’t lived under a rock) it’s easy to see all teachers don’t have children’s best interests at heart, some legitimately try to help their charges – only to be thwarted by school administration.
Patrick Daley, 36, of Lansing, Michigan, was convicted last October of 18 counts of second degree criminal sexual conduct, citing the molestation of many young boys (8 of whom testified at the trial) at Washington Woods Middle School, where he taught fifth grade. He was sentenced to between 7 and 15 years in prison. Since then, parents have alleged, in a lawsuit filed by the family of one of the victims, that the school had prior knowledge of Daley’s crimes for a period of at least three years and did nothing other than essentially asking him to tone it down a little.
Daley, who never admitted to his crimes, even at sentencing when begged to do so by mothers of his victims, was never formally investigated by Holt School District, and he was never reported to police. Teachers, staff members, volunteers and students made at least 8 separate reports to the district about Daley’s actions between the 2016-2017 school year and May 2018 (when Daley was finally investigated by Ingham County Sheriff’s Office), according the lawsuit . At least two administrators had conversations with Daley about how he interacted with young boys, the earliest in 2015. In one such conversation, the district’s human resources director told him his actions were very “dangerous and concerning,” but nothing was done other than warn him to maybe stop doing it.
Coworkers and former students of Daley’s admitted that the teacher was known for touching his students, from high-fives to hugs, and that many either didn’t realize or weren’t aware that his behavior had turned inappropriate. Grazing his hand over a male child’s groin, or letting his hand rest on their buttocks for extended periods of time were apparently regular occurrences for Mr. Daley, who preyed on his students’ trust and familiarity with him.
Washington Woods Middle School, in Delhi Charter Township, Michigan, serves approximately 450 students in grades 5 and 6. It has test scores average with the state, and has no other exceptional information – good or bad – to report regarding its makeup or achievements. In other words, it’s just your average middle school.
Prior to molesting children at Washington Woods, Daley worked at Cole Academy in Lansing, a small elementary charter school with about 200 students in grades K-6. Though more diverse than Washington Woods, it still has nothing to set it apart from hundreds of other schools in the country. Daley was let go from Cole as early as 2013 after he was caught sexually harassing male students and watching them shower while on field trips, according to the lawsuit that was filed against the district. No apparent reports were made to police. Daley just found himself another job, and another opportunity to harm innocent children.
In addition to his job diddling young boys, Daley also worked as a high school hockey coach.
Lawsuit: Holt Public Schools ignored multiple reports of sexual abuse by 5th grade teacher
Ex-Holt teacher sentenced to prison for sex assault of fifth-grade students
More students testify in alleged sexual abuse case against former teacher, Patrick Daley
More we know about Patrick Daley
Where Your Children Are 