Teaching assistant accused of 'inappropriate contact' with students
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KEIZER, Ore. – A teaching assistant at Whiteaker Middle School in Keizer was arrested on Wednesday on charges related to inappropriate contact with three students, according to a school district spokesman.
Jose Moreno, a teaching assistant who worked with special needs students, was arrested by Keizer police officers, according to Jay Remy with the Salem-Keizer School District.
Police say they have identified all three victims in the case and they’ve told their parents about the accusations.
Police say the abuse happened over a couple of years and not just where Moreno worked but also in his home.
Moreno was placed on administrative leave pending the result of the investigation, Remy said.
Moreno previously taught at Clear Lake Elementary from March to June 2008 and was later re-hired in September of 2008 at Whiteaker Middle School. Moreno has been at Whiteaker ever since, Remy said.
Moreno is in jail on several charges of sex abuse.
Looks from the picture like he had inappropriate contact with McDonaldâs on several occasions, also.
@Jabroni - He'll have to register to not go to any restaurant with a drive thru window.
I can't begin to think of a lower life-form of scum than someone who would abuse those with special needs, that need the most help, and literally have their trust in those who are supposed to be helping them. If convicted, I don't know if there's any punishment truly appropriate for what he has done.
 @pdxd uhhh,,,, what did he do?
As of this morning, they have apparently notified the families. It seems fair for me to point that out after my response below. REGARDLESS. The answer by the spokesman should have been that they will absolutely notify the parents when cleared by the police (can't imagine they'd want you to wait more than an hour or two) and that they will support the families as best they can. Â It was a horrible, horrible response.Â
 @Joan Guthrie Medlen You can thank the teachers union for that. Just short of a represented employee being caught with a knife in their hand, standing over a bloody body, they're always put on 'administrative leave'.
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I'm by no means an apologist for the administrative arm of the public schools system, but their hands are tied by the unions in such instances.
So disturbing thatÂ
a) he is out on administrative leave - though in jail while he collects his pay.
b) that your story neglects to mention that it's entirely possible the students who were victmiized do not have the skills to tell people what happened.Â
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Students with developmental disabilities often have trouble with expressive communication. Their ability to "tell" someone that something bad has happened is often shown behaviorally. Something they may have been doing, but that was then considered a "problem behavior" by the adults around them. In fact, if they did try to act out about the abuse, they may have been put on a "behavior plan" to help reduce the behavior. Often in schools, and even unwitting parents at home , do not seek the cause for the new behavior before implementing a plan to reduce it.Â
I appreciate the school spokesperson not wanting to do anything to jeopardize the case (i.e., notify parents of students involved), BUT I have to wonder out loud if that is what would have happened if these were NOT children with disabilities. Â As a cynical mother of an adult boy with disabilities, I can say that it sounded to me more like wanting to avoid a potential lawsuit.. I hope not, but past experience in my own district (not Keizer) and stories from around the country do not support the notion.
Elementary, and Middle school special needs children.....
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That's a whole new level of sickness right there. One of the cases where a lifetime preditory sexual offender registration requirement is well deserved....of course, castration and daily beatings are also (IMO) well deserved as well.Â
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My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. Thankfully, it doesn't appear (from the charges filed) that sodomy or intercourse took place.
@MarkKpic sadly, there is little evidence that castration truly prevents re-offense. The illness with sex-offenders is mental (in their head, not in their nether-regions).
 @pdxd  @MarkKpic Agreed. Psychologically it's typically attributed to a sense of 'power' or authority over the victims.Â
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Although, I'd probably castrate him with a dull blade and let him bleed out. Impotence wasn't my intended goal. I have a great deal of disdain for any adult who victimizes a child, let alone a special needs child placed in their care.Â
@MarkKpic I'd rather he have to castrate himself with a spork than someone else have to.....as a child victim myself, I have a great deal of anger towards those who abuse children, and an ever greater deal of anger placed to those who victimize those with limited ability to defend themself.
If found guilty they should feed him to the Hogs of Coos County. The chance of recidivism would be very slight.
Hang him, along with the rest of the chesters
If found guilty, they should allow the parents of the children violated to determine the appropriate punishment.
This guy doesn't even look like he speaks English. Did the Keizer school system have some affirmative action quota to fill?
@nostromo That comment doesn't reek of racism at all. I bet you consider yourself a good Christian too.
 @nostromo Doesn't everyone? Of course I don't know how learning English alters one's appearance. I speak French -- does my blonde hair give it away?
 @badcat It's not the learning of English, but the failure to learn it. Congratulations on your bilingualism-how nice for you!
wow there is a run on these kinds of events. These folks make me sick, keep your hands and ding a ling to your self.Â
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sounds like a legal term. Â He probably touched but nothing further, that's my guess
 @archon312 I'm sure it's a legal term in criminal-friendly states; Like stealing a car is now "vehicle tampering". What's considered "inappropriate contact" in Oregon is usually considered sexual abuse in most other states.
So does "inappropriate contact" only refer to sexual contact, or could it mean that he shoved/hit/kicked a kid, or was too aggressive restraining a special needs student that was acting out? All those types of contact seem inappropriate as well, but maybe the connotation is supposed to be obvious. Guess we'll find out at 11.
@badcat I was assuming that it probably meant that there was a habit of touching the naughty-bits.
 @badcat From Marion county jail roster:
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MORENO, JOSE JUAN SID: 19705478 LODGED
Lodged: 10/10/2012 14:20 Max: DoB: 09/30/1967 Arrest: KZP Type: PROBABL Docket: Hold Auth: MARION Charge Bail Status Next Court Release
1 SEX AB I NO BAIL PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
2 SEX AB I NO BAIL PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
3 SEX AB I NO BAIL PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
4 SEX AB I NO BAIL PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
5 SEX AB I NO BAIL PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
6 SEX AB I NO BAIL PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
7 SEX AB III 5000 PRETRIA10/11/2012 15:00 CIRCUI
 @FUBAR Thanks for the details. I would say "you should be a reporter!" except it's clear they only hire reporters who don't like doing independent research. =P
Is today sex offence day? Seems to be quite a few stories about those convicted and those arrested.......The clown in Newberg had no business being in a high school with his criminal history......He should have been tutored while in juvenile prison to get his GED after all his is 18.....Student rapist, teachers aide messing around with students, and of course Sandusky and the jerk that attacked the boy at Wendy's.....Flush the toilet!
@FreerideNOT You realize there are a lot of 18 year old kids in high school, right? Calling an 18 year old high school student who had consensual sex with a 15 year old high school student (or two) is simply ridiculous.
@Portlander29 I turned 18 early on in my senior year in highschool just based on when I was born, so there are a lot of 18 year olds in high school, and no they don't end up all getting hands on with younger classmates. The 18 year old and 15 year old dillema, definitely a moral issue. Some kids mature faster than others, so I think the law regarding ages of consent is essentially saying that by this age most people should be mature enough to consent, and those under that age regardless of maturity probably aren't. It's a slippery slope of a moral issue.
@pdxd It's pretty much an arbitrary number because most people who are 18 shouldn't be having sex either because of the risk of pregnancy and their lack of being ready for that.
@Portlander29 ????? "Calling an 18 year old high school student who had consensual sex with a 15 year old high school student" Your point?...........By being 15 years old one cannot legally consent to sexual relations with an adult (18), thus we have a criminal offence........Second, perhaps you might review other information....the 18 yr old was just released from the juvenile equilvent of PRISON in eastern Oregon and had only been at the high school for 3 mos......Ya think something is wrong here?
@Portlander29 Do a little research and you will find the FORMER students criminal history and his release date/charges etc. In addition you just might find that he was only a student for 3 weeks in Jan 12 and has not been back......Lots of issues with this one, the guy was NOT a fellow student.
@FreerideNOT And at 15 a girl is allowed to get an abortion without parental consent. So she is old/mature enough to make that decision but not to have sex? Talk about bass ackwards laws.
@FreerideNOT Was he in for rape?
@Portlander29 Spoken like someone who doesn't have a 15-year-old daughter (or two).
 @Portlander29Â
"Never" is a strong word. An 18 year-old man, just out of a juvenile detention facility, living apart from his parents, tattooing kids in his apartment and luring your 15 year-old daughter there to have sex and probably for drugs and alcohol as well is not enough for you to "ruin" this "kids" life? First of all, he's not a kid. Secondly, he's already ruined his own life by his poor choices and he's seeking to drag the kids down with him. Thirdly, by refusing to act decisively, you would be failing in your job as a parent to protect your daughter from this POS and demonstrating that you really don't love her anyway. No, the school nurse, police and the parents did exactly the right thing in charging this guy. He's a menace to the kids in the school and they deserve to be protected from him.
@Finally I would never ruin a kids life for having sex with my daughter if she was willing in a situation where the boy is 18 and she is 15. That's just asinine. A three year age difference between an 18 year old boy and 15 year old girl pretty much puts them at the same level of maturity in most cases.