Barstow Christian admin: ‘School bears some responsibility’ in child sex case

By Charity Lindsey
Desert Dispatch
March 13, 2017

http://www.desertdispatch.com/news/20170311/barstow-christian-admin-school-bears-some-responsibility-in-child-sex-case

BARSTOW — Barstow Christian School administrators' recent admission that previous school policy on reporting child abuse was unlawful came just weeks before the release of former school secretary and convicted child molester Kristen Blanton, according to victim lawyers.

While Blanton was set to be released Sunday, a motion filed last month alleges that BCS Principal Heather Bradford knew of Blanton's inappropriate contact with the 14-year-old male student victim as early as three months before her arrest and failed to report it.

The victim's attorneys filed the motion in San Bernardino Superior Court to add punitive damages to their lawsuit against the school and Blanton, two years after she was arrested for allegedly molesting the victim multiple times beginning in October 2014.

During deposition testimony last month, according to court documents and the victim's lawyers, both Bradford and BCS Superintendent and Senior Pastor of Barstow Free Methodist Church Dr. Chris Monroe admitted that the school's written policy on reporting childhood abuse violates the state mandatory reporting laws.

Bradford told the Daily Press on Tuesday that she "could not make any comment" due to being in the middle of litigation. The Daily Press made several attempts to reach Monroe without any response.

When Bradford was asked during deposition if she had received "any training that indicates how to prevent, identify, stop" childhood sexual abuse prior to 2015, she answered "No." Monroe confirmed in his testimony that he never provided Bradford with this training.

Bradford also testified that while she first became aware of the concerns around Blanton's inappropriate relationship with a student "when she was arrested," she admitted that looking back, she could see reason to believe Blanton had been "grooming" the victim for sexual abuse.

"In hindsight, if you put it all together with her lying, then yes (I see those signs)," Bradford said. Later, she said, "In hindsight, the school bears some responsibility."

Victim attorneys claim that if Bradford had fired Blanton earlier on after several reports of misconduct in her classroom — including an instance when the victim kissed Blanton on the cheek in the middle of class in October 2014 (Bradford said "he was being funny," and it was not sexual in nature) — then the abuse wouldn't have occurred since she wouldn't have had access to the student anymore.

Although she didn't report the misconduct, Bradford said she did warn the victim not to be alone with Blanton, victim attorney Morgan Stewart said.

Bradford advised Blanton that she was to remain at least six feet away from the victim at all times, Stewart said.

According to Stewart, the victim's mother learned of the sexual relationship between her son and Blanton after the principal imposed the "six-foot separation," and immediately called police, who arrested Blanton in school on Jan. 15, 2015.

Blanton was sentenced in December 2015 to three years — down from the 12 she originally faced — in state prison after pleading guilty to lewd or lascivious acts with a child aged 14 to 15 years old and dissuading a witness or victim, The three-year sentence was part of a plea deal with prosecutors, according to previous Desert Dispatch reports, after prosecutors dismissed six felony counts and Blanton had 172 days knocked off for time served and good behavior.

Prior to the sentencing, the victim's mother read a statement to the court saying she accepted the plea deal for her family's privacy and safety and to allow Blanton's husband, daughters and parents to "begin to heal." She said Blanton's family had been betrayed by Blanton just as she had, according to previous Desert Dispatch reports.

The Desert Dispatch also reported in 2015 that after serving her sentence, Blanton will be paroled for three to four years, and was ordered to register as a sex offender for the rest of her life.