A former local band teacher has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge stemming from a sexual relationship he had with a student years ago, but not before the involved parties accused school administration of playing a part in the underage abuse.
The Worcester County Courthouse in Snow Hill is pictured.
File photo
By Bethany Hooper, Associate Editor
A former Stephen Decatur High School band teacher pleaded guilty last week to a misdemeanor charge stemming from a sexual relationship he had with a student more than three decades ago, but not before the involved parties accused school administration of playing some part in the underage abuse.
In Worcester County Circuit Court July 15, Ronald Lee Davis, 64, of Salisbury, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor violation of the state education law regarding sex offenses that occurred on premise. As part of a plea agreement with the state’s attorney’s office, Davis waived the one-year statute of limitations for the misdemeanor charge and was sentenced to six months, with all but two days – or time already served – suspended.
“Actions have consequences, and he is here today accepting those consequences,” John Phoebus, Davis’ attorney, said.
Last fall, law enforcement in Worcester County received a letter from the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Office of Child and Youth Protection regarding a woman who told them she had been sexually abused during her time as a student at Stephen Decatur. When reached by local law enforcement, the victim said she wanted to move forward with an investigation. She told police her sexual relationship with Davis during the 1991-1992 school year led to depression and nightmares.
“What Mr. Davis has done has left me with a lifetime of trauma,” she told the court this week.
During Monday’s plea hearing, Assistant State’s Attorney Pam Correa detailed the events that transpired during the victim’s senior year of high school. While acknowledging that the sexual relationship was consensual, she said the victim, who was 16 and 17 years old at the time, knew the relationship was wrong and didn’t know how to stop it.
Correa said the victim had three classes with Davis and that sexual acts occurred in the band room, in Davis’ office and in the instrument room, in addition to Davis’ home. She said the investigation also revealed that other students and parents had suspected Davis of having an inappropriate relationship with the victim.
Correa said a parent who had witnessed the victim lean her head against Davis’ shoulder during a band trip that year shared the incident with Lou Taylor, who was vice principal at the time. Taylor, who now serves as the school system superintendent, told investigators last fall that Davis had approached him in the spring of 1992 to confess to the sexual relationship. Taylor then shared the information with the school principal, who then reported it to the school superintendent at the time.
Davis resigned that year and went to work for Somerset County Public Schools in 1993. He continued to teach there up until last fall, when district administration, having learned of the criminal investigation, placed him on administrative leave.
Phoebus told the court this week his client had admitted the sexual relationship to school leadership and had moved on to another school district, where he remained for three-plus decades. He said since the case was reported in the media, no other students have come forward with allegations against Davis.
“That suggests to me this was a one-time lapse in judgment,” he told the judge.
Both the prosecution and defense said the agreement presented to the court this week was the favored outcome, as it guaranteed a conviction and avoided revictimization. Correa added that the plea exposed school administration for failing to report the relationship to authorities.
“That’s the crux of this case,” she said.
Both parties also shared information Davis provided to prosecutors during a proffer session. In that meeting, Davis told prosecutors that the administration did not visit his classroom or supervise his instruction, even after the suspected relationship was brought to Taylor. Davis also told the prosecution that Taylor had tried to convince him not to tender his resignation.
“My client described a culture at Stephen Decatur High School that was quite different a year later when he went to work for Somerset County Public Schools,” Phoebus said.
Correa added that the state had subpoenaed the school system for Davis’ personnel records, which she said failed to mention the sexual relationship or the reason for his resignation. Both sides also reported that Worcester County Public Schools had offered him a job in 2015, despite knowing the circumstances of his leaving. The victim also alleged that administrators prioritized protecting their colleague over her own safety.
“I need everyone to know that Worcester County Public Schools suspected the abuse to be happening and did nothing,” she said.
When reached this week, Worcester County Public Schools declined to comment, but specifically addressed remarks made about Davis’ job offering in 2015.
“The school system will not comment on this matter other than to correct the record that as evidenced by the Board’s personnel actions in 2015, Davis was never recommended to the Board for hiring,” said Carrie Sterrs, the school system’s coordinator of public relations and special programs.
At the conclusion of Monday’s hearing, Judge Brett Wilson accepted the plea agreement, which was brought before the court for the second time in just as many months. In June, Judge Beau Oglesby dismissed the case, arguing Davis could not plead guilty to the misdemeanor charge, which was not listed in the charging document. Since then, the case has been refiled to reflect the misdemeanor charge, and the plea agreement was executed this week.
Wilson also issued a $1,000 fine, plus court fees, and placed Davis under three years of supervised probation, during which time he cannot contact the victim or have any unsupervised contact with unrelated female minors. Phoebus said his client will not return to teaching.
“I take full responsibility for my actions and the pain that came with those actions,” Davis said in his apology to the victim last week.