This story sounds tragically familiar: Leonard Ortiz Jr., a former special needs teaching assistant at Council Rock, has just been federally charged with receipt, distribution, and possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Ortiz's alleged crimes include sharing this illicit material on social media with other users. While Ortiz was at Council Rock in 2021 and 2022, according to community reports, he worked with children who were non-verbal or otherwise disabled. We do not yet know if Ortiz behaved inappropriately with or abused any of these children.

Superintendent Kevin McGowan said in a statement: "We are an organization that prides itself on providing care for the children of this community with the very best people. I am steadfast in my confidence in the people that work in the District and believe deeply in their level of care and concern for all students. It is so disappointing when we follow a rigorous process for hiring and supervising individuals, which we did in this case as well, and a situation like this occurs. Please know that we all share your concern, anger, and sadness and will continue to do everything in our power to keep our students safe."

If the district is interested in keeping students safe, we suggest it put its money where its mouth is and launch a full investigation into the many reports of Brighton staff sexual abuse and misconduct over the years. Only by reckoning with the truth of what has happened to students under its care, and how mistakes and oversights occurred, can BCSD set a different course for the future. 

(Photo credit: Will Morgan/ WHAM)