OAK CREEK, Wis. – The previous Oak Creek Excessive Faculty trainer charged with sexually assaulting a pupil tried getting the college district to take away its investigation from her personnel file.
Milwaukee County prosecutors charged Rachel Goodle, 22, in July with second diploma sexual assault of a kid and intercourse assault of a pupil by faculty workers. The alleged incident occurred Dec. 2, 2022.
FOX6 Information first discovered of the allegations in June and filed an open data request with the Oak Creek-Franklin Joint Faculty District for Goodle’s personnel file, as a result of she was a public worker on the time.
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State legislation required the district to tell Goodle of the request. In July, Goodle sued the district to block the release of her records.
Her legal professional argued releasing the data may impede her proper to a good trial.
In November, Milwaukee County Circuit Courtroom Choose David Borowski disagreed. He discovered the courtroom lacked jurisdiction as a result of Goodle’s legal professional didn’t correctly file or serve a summons.
But when he’d had jurisdiction, Borowski wrote his resolution can be the identical, as a result of, “Goodle didn’t show there’s a respectable public coverage concern for a good trial”.
FOX6 Information obtained Goodle’s personnel file, together with a replica of the investigation into her alleged misconduct, on Feb. 8.
Surveillance video reveals “unacceptable and inappropriate conduct”
The Oak Creek-Franklin Joint Faculty District started Dec. 15, 2022, after college students despatched picture and video proof to the district.
The 19-page report lists Oak Creek Excessive Faculty Principal Candis Mongan, Oak Creek Ninth Grade Middle Principal Keith Ruffolo and the district’s Human Sources Director Troy Hamblin as lead investigators. Goodle labored in the highschool’s Ninth Grade Middle as an English trainer.
On Dec. 16, 2022, the report mentioned Ruffolo interviewed Goodle and requested her if she was ever alone with a pupil. Goodle responded that she is at all times with two or three youngsters, that she’s by no means been alone with a pupil, and that her classroom door is at all times open when college students are in there, in response to the report.
But, a evaluation of surveillance video offered by the college district, which was used as a part of the investigation, contradicts that.
On Dec. 2, 2022, Goodle is seen leaving the college after lessons are performed carrying a sweatshirt and pants.
She returns round an hour later carrying a costume. The coed might be seen ready for Goodle in her classroom.
Surveillance video captures Goodle enter the classroom and shut the door.
Rachel Goodle in courtroom for preliminary look
Nearly 20 minutes later, a member of the cleansing crew is seen utilizing keys to unlock the door and go in. She instructed investigators she believed Goodle and the coed had been mom and son, and that she didn’t see something romantic between them, per the report.
In all, Goodle and the coed are contained in the classroom for 53 minutes earlier than they’re seen strolling to a JV basketball recreation collectively.
A surveillance digital camera within the health club reveals the pair stroll previous the coed part and sit collectively on the bleachers. A gaggle of scholars all flip their heads and comply with Goodle and the coed as they stroll by.
The report mentioned college students instructed investigators they believed Goodle and the coed had been on a date. They sat collectively on the recreation for greater than two hours earlier than exiting the health club collectively and going their separate methods.
District investigators interviewed Goodle 3 times, and within the report, they compiled 11 inaccurate statements she made throughout these interviews.
For instance, on Jan. 4, 2023, she instructed Hamblin she didn’t go to the sport with the coed, when surveillance cameras present the other.
Investigators requested each Goodle, the coed, and the coed’s dad and mom whether or not she had intercourse with the coed. Goodle and the coed denied the allegation, whereas the dad and mom instructed the district they did not imagine the 2 had intercourse.
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Nonetheless, the district discovered Goodle in volation of the worker handbook due to her “unacceptable and inappropriate conduct”.
“It is vitally clear that [Goodle] offered quite a few inaccurate statements and omitted quite a few information all through this investigation in what seems to be an try and cowl up a relationship past that of a typical pupil and a typical trainer,” the report mentioned. “Maybe there’s one other clarification for her obstruction of the investigation. She has not instructed us what that may be.”
In the end, the district recommends suspending Goodle for 10 days initially, whereas giving her the choice to cut back it to five days if she comes ahead with extra info.
The district additionally forged doubt about her capability to successfully return to educating.
“It’s the administration’s perception that [Goodle’s] popularity is eternally tarnished and the way she is seen by college students might be completely different than different lecturers,” the report mentioned.
“Nonetheless, if [Goodle] needs to strive, we’ll accommodate her, and permit her to return to educating,” it mentioned.
District reduces suspension, affords ‘scatter’ plan
On the ultimate web page of its report, the district outlined its suspension plan for Goodle.
As an alternative of a consecutive suspension, the district determined to scatter the suspension days throughout Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, to, “try and restrict the affect on anyone paycheck”.
Goodle reported again to work on Jan. 13, 2023, with a ‘Plan of Help’ to assist her with classroom administration and professionalism.
On Jan. 18, 2023, Goodle filed a grievance with the district concerning the suspension.
“After investigation, Mr. Hamblin decided there was no proof of any improper relationship, however moderately than give attention to “information” in his investigation, Mr. Hamblin made determinations of these information, suggesting I used to be not forthfright and that he had proof of my improper conduct,” Goodle wrote.
“Mr. Hamblin offered me with the choice of a 10-day suspension or a 5-day suspension if I agreed to reveal all the things to my principal. I’ve already disclosed all the things and don’t imagine that Mr. Hamblin would have handled a male trainer the identical method,” Goodle mentioned.
On Feb. 7, 2023, then-Superintendent Dan Unertl wrote Goodle again.
Unertl lowered Goodle’s suspension from 10 days to 4, following her clarification throughout a Feb. 1, 2023, assembly with Unertl.
“I imagine you to be honest in your clarification of what you will have discovered from this whole state of affairs,” Unertl wrote. “I’m very longing for brighter days forward…”
The superintendent additionally declined Goodle’s request to destroy or take away the investigation from her file, saying it will be “improper” to take action.
Prison expenses come after remark, police involvement
Whereas the college district investigated the allegations of an inappropriate relationship, the highschool’s faculty useful resource officer started asking concerning the case.
Officer Zachary Case wrote on Jan. 6, 2023, that he had heard rumors a few pupil being in a relationship with a trainer. He wrote that no faculty officers got here ahead to him with the data.
In a police report, Case mentioned he requested Mongan and Hamblin concerning the allegations. They knowledgeable him that each the coed and trainer denied the allegations, and that the coed’s dad and mom did not imagine the allegations both.
That modified on Might 19, 2023.
Case mentioned the highschool requested Oak Creek Police formally examine the doable relationship between Goodle and a pupil, after a trainer heard the coed yell, “That is why I cheated on you with a trainer.”
Police interviewed the coed on Might 24, 2023, at the highschool.
Case mentioned the coed first denied something occurred, earlier than finally admitting the 2 had intercourse in Dec. 2022 and inside her classroom.
Officers arrested Goodle on June 14.
Milwaukee County prosecutors formally charged her on July 20, and Goodle pleaded not responsible to the fees in August.
The 22-year-old is due again in courtroom on Feb. 19 for a ultimate pre-trial listening to. The trial is about to start on April 22.
