Sexual abuse lawsuit against Lorena ISD reveals third victim

A third victim has come forward in a lawsuit alleging sexual abuse of preschool children at Lorena Primary School by a teacher, adding further pressure to the school’s controversial principal.

The newly discovered information was disclosed in an amended complaint dated June 26, filed by the parents of a previously identified victim named Jane Doe.

Jane’s parents sued Principal April Jewell and the Lorena Independent School District last August after preschool teacher Nicolas Crenshaw pleaded guilty to sexually abusing Jane and a second victim, identified as Student A, during the 2020-21 school year.

In the amendment, the parents allege that Jewell was aware of Crenshaw’s past sexual misconduct toward the third victim, identified as Student B, but failed to act, allowing the teacher to bully Jane.

Crenshaw went to prison, but Jewell kept her job.

The lawsuit accuses Jewell and other district administrators of failing to protect the students, who were four and five years old at the time of the abuse, despite warnings about Crenshaw’s inappropriate behavior toward the girls.

According to the amended complaint, “Plaintiff’s attorney recently learned that in early October 2020, a parent whose daughter attended the preschool section of Lorena Primary School complained to Defendant Jewell and teacher Stephanie Heslep that Nicolas Crenshaw had been touching and rubbing her daughter under her shirt.”

Parent B’s report predates the first known complaints filed with Defendants about Crenshaw and finds that in early October 2020, Defendants knew that Crenshaw was inappropriately touching a student under her clothing, but they took no meaningful action to prevent him from harming children, including Jane Doe, for the remainder of the school year.

“This information supports plaintiff’s allegations that LISD was knowingly indifferent to the risk of Crenshaw sexually abusing students and to reports that he engaged in sexually abusive behavior toward Jane,” the amended complaint states.

The federal court in Waco hearing the case must approve the new information.

Lorena ISD did not object to the Does’ request to amend their complaint, but Jewell did.

Jewell argued that the amendment added allegations related to her claim for qualified immunity, which the district court rejected. She appealed that decision, and the case against Jewell is now stayed until the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals rules on her immunity in the case.

Jane Doe’s parents filed their lawsuit in August 2023, but the court did not deny Jewell and the district’s motion to dismiss the case until June of this year.

In April, Lorena ISD parent Jessica Montez posted a copy of the original lawsuit online, along with a petition calling for Jewell to resign. That’s when many in the community first learned the details of the sexual abuse scandal.

Montez and others began sharing information about the case on social media and speaking out at school board meetings, leading to increased local coverage of the lawsuit and parents’ concerns.

The publicity of the case prompted the district to release a statement saying that Lorena ISD “did not look the other way or take any action that made it easier for Crenshaw to commit his crimes” and that it would “allow the legal process to take its course.”

The publicity also sparked a backlash from parents who demanded accountability from school officials.

Last month, the Lorena City Council rejected the bid of two fathers from the district for seats on the city’s economic development committee because they had spoken out publicly about the authorities’ handling of the sex scandal.

Still, parents at Lorena ISD aren’t giving in.

They created a Facebook group called “Justice for Jane” to share news and updates on the case.

In addition, parents are working with the advocacy group Texas Education 911 and state lawmakers on legislation to remove immunity for school officials from lawsuits involving sexual misconduct cases.