Waipahu case prompts review of procedures

The state Department of Education will hold compulsory training for all administrators and review its procedures in the wake of reports that Waipahu High School officials didn’t call police after a student alleged she had been sexually assaulted by a coach and instead concluded there was no wrongdoing after an internal investigation.

After the student and her father went to the police themselves, the Waipahu High coach and teacher was charged with three counts of third-degree sexual assault. He was allowed to return to work after his arrest, but was placed on leave after media inquiries.

DOE officials declined comment on how the case was handled, citing the ongoing investigation and confidentiality laws, but said they are taking steps to address growing concerns raised in recent days from child-welfare advocates and legislators.

The Waipahu High allegations come on the heels of a class-action suit on behalf of students at the Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind that alleges a group of students sexually assaulted younger students, and that school DOE officials looked the other way. The lawsuit remains in mediation, attorney Michael Green’s office said.

Police have also opened a criminal case against alleged suspects.

"Student safety is paramount," said schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi, adding the department will hold required training sessions for administrators "focused on internal investigations, mandatory reporting, employee arrests and related subject areas." Matayoshi also said the department is reviewing the Waipahu case and procedures on how administrators respond after an employee is arrested.

Erik Y. Tamura, 37, a Waipahu High teacher and girls running and track and field coach, made his first appearance in District Court Feb. 8 and is scheduled to appear again March 5. His attorneys say he is innocent and will be exonerated at trial.

Child-welfare advocates have questioned the school’s decision not to report the allegations to police. They say Hawaii’s mandatory reporting law — similar to those in every state — requires any employee of a public or private school to call police or Child Protective Services if they believe a child has been abused. The DOE declined to say whether employees are explicitly told to call police if an employee is accused of sex assault.

The department did say that at the beginning of each school year "officials have been instructed to follow mandatory reporting rules for suspected child abuse and neglect."

Adriana Ramelli, executive director of the Sex Abuse Treatment Center in Hawaii, declined to comment on the Waipahu High case, but said that whenever a student makes a sex assault allegation, "then the school has to take that seriously and implement … safeguards to protect that student. One of the safeguards is reporting it."

Ramelli added that false reporting of child sex assault cases is "very rare."

California attorney Mary Jo McGrath, a national expert on school sex abuse, said schools just need "reasonable suspicion of abuse" to call police. "They are not to do an investigation," she said. "They stand down during the police investigation."

She added that schools should "understand the proclivity to blame the victim."

"You’ve got to be able to look past that," she said.

Under state law, a mandatory reporter who fails to alert authorities of suspected abuse would be guilty of a petty misdemeanor. The Honolulu Police Department said it does not track the number of people charged under the statute yearly, if there are any.

The lawsuit against the Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind, filed in August 2011, said that as many 35 students might have been sexually abused by older students and that school officials failed to report sex assault allegations to police that were made as far back as 2007. The Department of Education placed Principal Sydney Dickerson on leave after the case came to light.

A temporary principal remains assigned to the Waikiki school.

State Sen. Jill Tokuda, chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee, said the Waipahu and HSDB cases highlight the need for a review of DOE policy on mandatory reporting and how to handle sex abuse allegations. She said the Board of Education could conduct such a review to see whether the problem is a lack of policy or training.

"I think it really does start with some really good eyes taking a look at the problem," Tokuda said. "You have got to assess what you’ve got right now, making sure the child’s well-being is the priority. Is it a question of changing policy … (or) changing practice?"

State Rep. Roy Takumi, chairman of the House Education Committee, also said a review of policies might be a way to provide a clearer understanding of whether Waipahu High administrators responded inappropriately to the sex assault allegations.

THE Waipahu High student told school officials in October that Tamura had sexually assaulted her three times over a two-year period, starting when she was 15. Her father said the coach continued to work at the school and oversee his accuser at practices for months, even after he had been charged and had appeared in court.

The Star-Advertiser is not naming the student.

Her father said he assumed Waipahu High officials would contact police and was shocked when he learned they hadn’t. He said that shortly after he and his daughter filed a police report, he received a letter from Waipahu High Principal Keith Hayashi saying the school’s investigation determined the coach had not violated any policies surrounding student safety and welfare and against harassment of students.

Hayashi did not return calls for comment.

Pearl City-Waipahu Complex Area Superintendent Norman Pang declined comment.

The student’s father said he’s "lost all faith" in the school.

He also said that since Tamura’s arrest, his daughter has been dealing with negative comments from her peers and push-back from staff. He said his daughter told him that in a recent class her teacher wrote the word "allegation" on the board and asked students to help him define it. "To me, that’s harassment too," the father said.