Educator pleads not guilty in covering up assault claim
- A parent claimed her child was touched inappropriately
- The claim was determined to be unfounded
- But school official Sandra Brower broke a rule by not telling police
WALL, N.J. — Four years ago, Sandra D. Brower, then the assistant superintendent in Wall, received an email from one of her principals saying a parent had claimed a teacher had taken her 4-year-old child into a school bathroom and touched him in his private area, according to court documents.
After an investigation, the allegations were determined to be unfounded. But according to an indictment filed against her Monday, Brower, who since then has become the schools superintendent in Lacey, N.J., never contacted police, as she was supposed to do, and when confronted by police about it, lied about her knowledge of the accusation.
Now she is on leave from her post in Lacey and faces five to 10 years in prison if convicted of attempting to cover up the whole thing – even if nothing happened at all.
"Thankfully it (the allegation) was not ultimately sustained. But we're talking about what the here and now was back in May of 2009," said Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni, who is prosecuting the case. "That's why these allegations are so important. That's why it's so important to police these allegations, if proven to be true, because people in those positions have to be truthful, honest and forthright, especially when they're asked questions about something that happened on their watch, in their school, while they were in charge."
On Monday afternoon Brower, 46, arrived at the Monmouth County courthouse in Freehold, N.J., to answer charges that she covered up the alleged assault by lying to investigators, misleading them and manipulating faculty emails. The three-count indictment also alleges she fired, transferred or forced the resignation of district employees who were aware of her misconduct.
Wearing a navy-blue suit, Brower pleaded not guilty to the charges – official misconduct, hindering apprehension or prosecution and obstruction – and was released with no bail after a brief hearing before state Superior Court Judge Francis J. Vernoia.
Her attorney, Edward C. Bertucio, called the charges false and ridiculous. He asked the judge for the soonest possible trial date, he said, "in an effort to gain Ms. Brower's immediate exoneration and to clear her name." She is scheduled to appear in court again on June 10. Brower was placed on paid leave Wednesday night by the board of education in Lacey, where she has been the superintendent since 2011.
The indictment says that on May 7, 2009, a school principal emailed Brower to notify her about the sexual assault allegation made by the student, who had special needs. Gramiccioni declined to name the school.
The next morning, Brower spoke with the principal "on a number of occassions," as well as other district officials, about the allegation, according to the indictment. One of her conversations was with then-superintendent James F. Habel, whose home was raided in September and is now under investigation by the Prosecutor's Office. Gramiccioni would not say if there is any link between the two investigations.
Brower instructed another employee to forward the principal's email to the school district attorney, according to the indictment.
She was required by state law to immediately notify law enforcement when there was reason to believe that a sex crime was committed on school grounds, according to the indictment.
Around 2:30 p.m. on May 8, 2009, Wall police investigated the allegation after being alerted by the state Division of Youth and Family Services. Brower told police that she learned of the allegation just moments before officers arrived and that the email she received from the principal the day before did not provide any information about the alleged assault, according to the indictment. It also says that "she would have never allowed the situation to last as long as it did and she would have immediately made the appropriate notifications to the Wall Township Police."
That evening, she directed the district's information technology director to extract the emails of all district employees whom she believed had knowledge of the May 7, 2009, email and her familiarity with the allegation, according to the indictment. That IT director extracted dozens of emails, it said.
To further cover up her misconduct, the indictment alleges, district employees who knew about Brower's false statements to police and her attempted coverup were either fired, transferred, or forced to retire or resign within weeks of the incident. Gramiccioni would not say how many employees were affected.
In 2011, Brower left Wall to become to the superintendent of the Lacey school district. Her salary last year was $167,500, according to the Asbury Park Press' Data Universe website.
Wall Superintendent Daniel D. Simon Sr. declined to comment due to the ongoing investigation.
Lacey school board president Eric J. Schubiger also declined to comment, but issued a statement saying that the district's attorney, Arthur Stein, is reviewing the indictment and that the school board is "scheduling a special meeting to discuss the matter."
Robert Hoebee, an 83-year-old Lacey resident and vocal critic of the school board, called Brower's alleged misconduct unethical and said that he hopes "that she feels the full pressure of the law."
Stein said that because the investigation was ongoing, it would not have shown up on a background check when the board was checking Brower's background.
Brower told several board members that charges against her were forthcoming, Stein said. They called a special meeting on Wednesday night to appoint assistant superintendent Vanessa Clark as the acting superintendent, he said.
(Contributing: Nicholas Huba)