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Saturday, October 31, 2009
Teacher Appears in Court
By Andrea Schoellkopf And Rozanna M. Martinez
Journal Staff Writers
Jimmy Carter Middle School parents, concerned after a teacher was arrested for having sex with a 13-year-old student, asked the district Friday night to start doing psychological evaluations and periodic background checks on faculty after they are hired.
Jimmy Carter principal Rita Martinez and district officials met with about 40 parents during a meeting at the school regarding the case of Kristy Sanchez-Trujillo, a 33-year-old social studies teacher who was fired after she admitted to the relationship with the seventh-grade boy. He was one of her students.
Earlier in the day, Sanchez-Trujillo was swept into Metropolitan Court Judge Kevin Fitzwater's courtroom just before her first court appearance on three charges of criminal sexual penetration and a charge of criminal sexual contact.
Dressed in dark slacks, heels and gold hoop earrings with hands thrust in the pockets of her buttoned charcoal coat, the young mother of three said nothing to the judge as she stood next to attorney Armando Torres.
Because she had no previous criminal record, Fitzwater said she could remain out on her $25,000 bond.
She was hustled out of the courtroom afterward.
In statements made to police Wednesday, Sanchez-Trujillo admitted to having sex with the student on two occasions in the past week while parked late at night in her ex-husband's Ford Explorer in Petroglyph National Monument.
On Friday, she was ordered to not return to the school or to have contact with the boy.
"I think that my client has been crucified by the media at this point," Torres said outside the courtroom. After the hearing, he told reporters, "I think it's time for the justice department of the state of New Mexico to take its course with regard to the criminal justice system."
The District Attorney's Office, upon receiving the case from police, will decide whether to pursue it through a preliminary hearing or a grand jury, according to DA spokesman Pat Davis.
Parents at the evening meeting asked about measures Albuquerque Public Schools could take to prevent sexual misconduct in the schools and to protect their children.
School officials emphasized that background checks are done on all teacher candidates before they are hired.
"This particular employee had no record whatsoever," APS spokeswoman Monica Armenta said. "There was no indication anywhere that something like this was going to happen."
One parent suggested psychological evaluations for teachers while another wanted to know about the possibility of follow-up background checks after an employee is hired.
Armenta said further checks might not be possible because of a lack of funding, but she said she would have to get more information before responding to the ideas.
Martina Maturino, whose son is a seventh-grade student at Jimmy Carter, said her initial reaction was shock and disbelief when her son told her the news about Sanchez-Trujillo and the student.
"I said, 'oh, my God.' I didn't believe it," she said. "... I didn't believe it could happen at his school."
Martinez said the incident has had a devastating effect on staff and students.
"One incident can wipe away the successes we have had," Martinez said. "... This does not define us as a school or as a community."
Martinez said counselors have been talking to students and are also available to speak with concerned parents.
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