OLYMPIA…Senator Don Benton, R-Vancouver, today called upon the Senate Democrats to work their majority magic and pass his bill to protect Washington’s schoolchildren from predatory teachers. 

“Senate Democrat leadership has the power to pass this bill, regardless of what happened in committee,” said Benton.  “They have a choice: protect schoolchildren, or continue with these partisan games.” 

Wednesday morning, after continuous negotiations with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, sponsors of the bill and Senator Rosemary McAuliffe, chairwoman of the Senate Early Learning, K-12 and Higher Education Committee, Benton’s proposal, Senate Bill 5677, was killed by the chairwoman’s inaction to pass the bill before the Senate’s policy committee cutoff. 

Senate Bill 5677 permanently revokes certificates of teachers found viewing sexually explicit material on school grounds.  The proposal has received widespread support from the editorial boards of several major newspapers. 

Benton’s legislation comes on the heels of allegations that Bethel Junior High School teacher Chad Maughan, 35, engaged in sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old female student. Maughan previously worked as a science teacher at North Thurston High School but resigned after the North Thurston School District filed a complaint with the state alleging that he had accessed Internet pornography from his computer at work. 

“These people don’t belong in the school system where they are given trust by parents and full access to our children,” Benton added.  “Most teachers are outstanding, but their reputation is tarnished by a few bad apples.  We need to expunge the public education system of these bad apples.” 

Attending the news conference with Benton was Jim Hines of Friends and Neighbors of Theresa Gibbs, affiliated with the Tennis Shoe Brigade.  Hines has advocated on behalf of child safety legislation on several different occasions and fully supports Benton’s efforts to rid Washington’s public schools of predators. 

Last year, Benton worked with Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, to pass the following legislation to protect schoolchildren from predatory teachers:

Senate Bill 6171 speeds up and requires the conclusions of investigations of school employees.
Senate Bill 5533 requires school districts to share information regarding school employee misconduct.
Senate Bill 6220 outlines and clarifies misconduct reporting requirements. 

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For more information contact Tami Davis (360) 786-7519 or davis.tami@leg.wa.gov