Teacher convicted of child sex crimes says NC school knew of abuse but kept him on job
A former Wilmington teacher this week pleaded guilty to 59 charges of sex crimes against students and will spend at least 17 years in prison, according to WECT. But he also said the New Hanover County School District knew about some of the accusations and let him continue teaching, the station reports.
Michael Kelly was a science teacher first at Laney High School and then transferred to Isaac Bear Early College High School in 2006, WECT reports. He was arrested in February 2018 after more than 25 years as a teacher, the station said.
A prosecutor on the case told the court Tuesday that the school district was “aware of his abusive behavior with a student,” the Wilmington Star News reports. The New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office is investigating, according to the newspaper.
According to WWAY, Kelly shared explicit images with students at Isaac Bear and was part of a Snapchat group that students shared pictures of their penises on. Kelly also exposed himself to a student in a school bathroom, WWAY reports.
“In one case, Kelly arranged to meet with a student – who was 15 at the time – and engaged in a sexual act on him while filming the incident,” the Port City Daily reports.
The school system denied ever getting a complaint about Kelly, according to multiple reports. But a parent told WECT she had filed a complaint in 2003 when Kelly was at Laney High School and told administrators the science teacher was showing pornography to students.
The parent shared the original complaint with WECT, according to the station.
New Hanover County District Attorney Ben David said the school superintendent “assured me that they will fully cooperate with any investigation as we get to the bottom of what Mr. Kelly has said,” according to the Star News. “Obviously these are serious allegations, and we’re committed to pursuing them.”
Kelly pleaded guilty to almost 60 charges. For the most serious charge, first degree sexual exploitation and statutory sex with a minor, he was sentenced to serve at least 16 years, and for the rest of the crimes to serve at least another 20 to 84 months, according to the Port City Daily.
This story was originally published June 27, 2019 at 11:30 AM.
