close
close
hsuses

Wake County teacher arrested after WRAL investigation into abuse allegations

Theo

Wake County teacher James Rencher was arrested on 12 counts of assault following an investigation by WRAL News.

“Mr. Rencher insults and abuses students in class,” the letter states.

Justin’s mother, Tess Smithen, and Christian’s father, Tim King, told WRAL they immediately gave the letters to the school’s principal, Stacey Alston. Both parents said they were rebuffed and heard conflicting things. King was told the letter was insignificant. In a separate conversation, Smithen was told the letter was being investigated.

A follow-up letter to Smithen said the allegations had been “addressed.” Nothing further happened until 5 On Your Side got involved.

Last month, WRAL News reported that employees of the Wake County public school system failed to report the abuse allegations to authorities, a violation of state law.

Three days after the report, the Wake County Sheriff’s Office began its own investigation. Emails leaked to WRAL News say Justin and Christian were abused on seven separate occasions. In one email, a county official wrote that Rencher violently pushed Christian in the head. Another email detailed Justin’s abuse. Rencher allegedly kicked a ball out from under his butt, causing Justin to fall to the ground.

Rencher resigned from the county last spring. 598 days after the letters were delivered, he was arrested at the Wake County Justice Center.

Smithen and King are now calling for the school administration to resign.

“Something went wrong somewhere and someone needs to be held accountable,” Smithen said.

“In my opinion, the principal should be fired. He needs to resign or do something else – and definitely not be the head of a school,” King said.

Rencher was jailed on $100,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on July 22.

The Wake County Public School System released the following statement:

WCPSS is aware of the criminal charges filed against former employee James Rencher, and the school system has fully cooperated with law enforcement’s investigation.

While the school system cannot comment on the scope of a specific personnel matter, it is our practice to review allegations that arise during the course of an investigation. We cannot comment on specific reports to law enforcement, which would be considered confidential information about students and staff. The school system expects that allegations of abuse will be reported to law enforcement as required by law.

Creating and maintaining a safe environment for students is our top priority, and we recognize that these efforts are essential to building trust with our students’ families. The school system continually reviews its practices to consider how to improve its processes and training to support this priority.

WRAL News has also reached out to Rencher for comment and is awaiting a response.

Related Posts