The Española School District Board faces a Hobson’s choice when it meets tonight (5/20) to again discuss allegations against Superintendent Fred Trujillo and possibly take action. After a marathon closed meeting Monday night the bleary eyed group emerged with a plan to investigate Trujillo’s part in the many civil and criminal cases coming out of his old school district and gave him a list of tasks to perform while the outside investigation progressed.
District taxpayers are clear losers, regardless of the Board’s ultimate decision.
A Hobson’s choice is choosing between two equally unwanted paths of action. In this instance the Board can ignore mounting accusations against Trujillo that while superintendent at Pecos Independent School District he failed to act after several staff members were sexually inappropriate with students.
That’s a tough call whether to keep someone in such a position, hoping he didn’t do any of the things alleged in the many lawsuits. You’re also hoping that if he did do what is alleged, he’s seen the error of his ways and has not continued that behavior and is protecting Española students, not the many friends he brought with him to our District.
School boards don’t operate on hopes. They operate on facts.
Alternatively, the Board could fire him and Trujillo would walk away with a handy $300,000 plus payoff.
To make matters worse, when Trujillo was hired in February 2020, he brought with him some of his buddies from Pecos. One of them, Michael Lister, is also a defendant in the most recent suit. He is now in the Title IX head position. He is the person young girls are supposed to go to if they feel unsafe, threatened or discriminated against.
This is the guy who allegedly said, “These young girls aren’t as innocent as you think.”
Maybe not but that’s not his call. State law says report, investigate and expose the facts. If Trujillo goes, will Lister still be minimizing young girls’ problems?
Athletic Director Ira Harge is not a named defendant but his name comes up repeatedly in the different suits because he tends to hire pervert assistant basketball coaches, one of whom pleaded guilty to raping two different teenage girls and is in prison. The other is the offending party in the current civil suit and the acts he’s accused of are horrendous. He was just indicted.
Additionally, one of the Pecos teachers identified in several lawsuits accused of preying on teen boys is now a teaching coach in Española School District.
These folks are part of what was known as the “Pecos Posse” at Trujillo’s last job.
A lawsuit filed May 4 by Santa Fe attorney Diane Garrity on the part of one student, 14 at the time of the initial allegations, states Trujillo not only refused to investigate or take action, in some instances he’s accused of protecting the offending person. He allegedly told teachers they didn’t have proof when they reported inappropriate behavior and cautioned others reporting wrongdoing to not give in to gossip.
Several lawsuits, which allege wrongdoing by Trujillo during his time at Pecos have been settled. One criminal case moved through the courts and former assistant basketball coach Dominick Baca pleaded guilty.
Trujillo denies any wrongdoing.
A factor that must be part of the Board’s discussion is that if Trujillo stays, how much confidence will parents, staff and teachers have in him, knowing of the many accusations. Yes, we live in a society of innocent until proven guilty but how many similar accusations from different teachers, students and counselors should we brush off as unproven?
Trujillo rightfully argues he was dismissed from the earlier suits and there was no admission of guilt. This is standard in civil lawsuits. Civil suits are rarely about getting the truth or anyone to admit wrongdoing. They’re about money.
To that end the more people named, the more bargaining chips plaintiffs have to put more money in their pockets. Garrity will gladly drop Trujillo and Lister from this suit in exchange for a larger settlement amount.
Trujillo and Lister have no money. They’ll never admit to anything. It’s a waste of time. Garrity will agree to dismiss them and go after the Pecos District taxpayers.
We surely learned something from the Gary Gregor lawsuits, which continue to be filed, after taxpayers in three different school districts have paid almost $4 million in settlements with almost a dozen girls. Didn’t we?
These cases have similar stories as Gregors’. Teachers, staff and counselors saw Gregor acting inappropriately, reported it to a principal or superintendent and nothing was done.
Settling cases for money costs taxpayers but the system is rigged so that insurance companies are prepared to pay those settlements and move on. What’s never addressed in these cases are the young girls who will never come back whole from those awful experiences.
In Joshua Rico’s case, he literally extorted nude pictures, one after another, from a terrified 14-year-old who didn’t know what else to do. He allegedly did this for two years. It’s hard to wrap your head around that behavior.
She and another girl were forced to perform sex acts on and with Rico under the threat of their nude photos being sent to friends and family.
Money doesn’t fix that. Deeds matter. If the Board wants to keep Trujillo and his buddies, there better be some tight reins, and a check and balance system with principals. We don’t know if this Board is capable of that.
Yes it would be terrible to have to pay some similar type lawsuits down the road but while Board members love to give lip service to “for the children,” allowing children to be prey to sexual predators is unforgivable and again, they remain damaged from such abuse. Forever.
Money salves the parents. The victim, the child, remains broken.