TYLER (TX)
The Marshall News Messenger [Marshall TX]
February 23, 2026
By Jordan Green
Three East Texas school superintendents have been arrested this year on charges of failing to report child abuse to law enforcement, raising a question educators need to know how to answer: When and how must they report allegations of abuse?
The answer to the question is simple, said a Texas education attorney. Educators must report any report of abuse that they reasonably believe. And even if they have doubt about the allegation, the safest best is to report it and let law enforcement be the judge. Systems are in place to protect people if they are ultimately innocent.
“I always encourage clients — and the law strongly encourages clients — if you’re not sure, report,” attorney Katie Anderson said. “See something, say something.”
Anderson is a longtime attorney in Texas and is a partner with the Dallas-based Carrington, Coleman, Sloman & Blumenthal LLP law firm. She represents public schools and other public entities in various legal matters, including those involving child abuse.
In an interview with the News-Journal, Anderson outlined what educators need to know about abuse reporting.
East Texas superintendent cases
Now-former Union Grove ISD Superintendent Kelly Moore, former Winnsboro ISD Superintendent Brian “David” Wilcox and Winnsboro ISD Superintendent Aaron Nation were arrested in January on charges of failing to report child abuse.
Moore was arrested in connection with a May 2025 incident in which a student recorded another in the school bathroom, and the student who was recorded later threatened to commit suicide. Moore received information about the incident May 15 but did not report the matter to law enforcement until June 11. Moore resigned in July, was arrested in January and released on bond.
The Winnsboro superintendents were arrested in connection with allegations that a school coach and a substitute teacher had sexual relationships with students. Also arrested was Wilcox’s wife, Ashley, CBS19 reported.
The three were said to have had a role in failing to report the alleged abuse. Wilcox and Nation are accused of refusing to turn over evidence in the case, failing to report allegations soon enough and interfering with the investigation.
Basics for reporting abuse
In Texas, any adult who reasonably believes a child has been abused or neglected must report the allegation to the Department of Family and Protective Services or law enforcement within 48 hours; any adult who is a professional or a mandated reporter must report it within 24 hours. As always, if a child is in immediate danger, educators should call 911 immediately
State lawmakers increased reporting requirements for educators to report misconduct or child abuse in 2025. Child abuse also includes encouraging the child to engage in sexual conduct, according to state law.
Professionals must report the allegation to a law enforcement agency such as a sheriff’s office or police; the definition of a law enforcement agency does not include school police departments.
Principals must report to superintendents any allegations of misconduct by school employees or service providers within 48 hours of learning about the misconduct. The superintendent then must report the allegations to the Texas Education Agency’s State Board for Educator Certification within 48 hours of receiving the principal’s report.
State law now requires schools to notify parents or guardians when a school employee or service provider is accused of misconduct involving the child.
What is ‘reasonable belief’?
When faced with an allegation of abuse, educators must immediately report it “if they have any reason to think it could be true,” Anderson said.
“Even if they aren’t sure, they can always report it. There’s no harm if it’s made in good faith. As long as they didn’t make it up and they’re not intentionally misleading, they’ve got immunity for doing that,” Anderson said. “Failing to do it, they have liability. Doing it, they have immunity. So, if there’s ever any question, we want to encourage educators to just go ahead and make the call.”
The key phrase in discussions about reporting abuse allegations is “reasonable belief.” In other words, people must report an allegation if they reasonably believe it could be true and they think it is, Anderson said. Reasonable belief includes “what they knew, when they knew, what they believed and why they believed it,” Anderson said.
The challenge, however, is that some people reasonably believe or disbelieve for different reasons. People’s perceptions, experiences and motives are the key factors.
“Two people could look at the same set of facts, and one could reasonably believe, and one could reasonably not believe,” Anderson said. “That’s where it’s hard, and I think it’s frustrating, for those seeking to protect children.”
People sometimes doubt an allegation of abuse because they might know people involved in it, Anderson said. That could have a negative outcome; people might assume an accused person is innocent because they believe he or she is a good person.
However, people might doubt an allegation based on truthful external factors. If the person making an allegation has a history of lying or has expressed interest in being “out to get” the person they’re accusing, that person’s allegation might not be credible, Anderson said. In any case, people should assess whether the person making the allegation is credible, just like a jury does.
“A jury’s going to look at that witness on the stand and decide if they’re credible or not,” Anderson said. “Are they consistent? Does it seem rehearsed? Did they look you in the eye? There’s a lot of factors you look at to determine if someone’s telling you the truth.”
That said, reporting requirements are strict for cases in which someone reasonably believes an allegation, and the consequences of failing to report it are high, especially for principals and superintendents. For superintendents, failure to report alleged child abuse is a state jail felony.
“It’s being looked at very seriously because we know a lot more about what’s happening to children, and we as a society can, should and must protect them,” Anderson said.
Internal investigations
School officials might need to conduct some degree of investigation before reporting a matter to law enforcement in some cases, Anderson said. Those investigations can help schools determine whether to suspend or fire an employee, but they do not negate the need to report an allegation to law enforcement if it is reasonably believed. Those investigations also don’t extend the deadline to report abuse.
“I do have some circumstances where a little bit of investigation feels appropriate before we give a name of a person [to law enforcement],” Anderson said. “In some communities, that will leak out even though it’s not supposed to and will ruin that person’s career and maybe life.
“What you can’t do is delay, and you have to put some measures in place to make sure no one’s being harmed in the meantime.”
If an employee is accused of misconduct or abuse and the allegation is reasonably believed, he or she should be put on administrative leave, Anderson said. The employee can be paid, and no announcement has to be made. Administrative leave protects the district, the accused and the students.
Schools should have counselors talk with affected children in the interim and the long-term, Anderson said.
Fear of repercussions, false allegations
When educators and administrators receive reports of child abuse, some worry that reporting the allegation will ruin innocent people’s lives if it turns out to be false, Anderson said.
However, legal and educational institutions have procedures in place for accusations to be “fairly investigated,” Anderson said. “A lot of these complaints result in no action taken, no embarrassing news story, no public announcement.”
And: “There are many more allegations made that do not result in a finding of abuse than do. But those that do are of such a serious nature, with a consequence being harm to children, that it’s better to report.”
Some school officials might be concerned that an allegation of abuse by a school employee could taint the school’s reputation and cause it to lose community support. But almost all schools have dealt with allegations of abuse, and most community members don’t hold those against schools, Anderson said.
Texas law no longer allows people to report abuse anonymously, Anderson said. That might make people uncomfortable, but it allows law enforcement to follow up and obtain necessary information.
What should school leaders say?
When allegations of abuse are made against educators, rumors swirl online and on social media. Oftentimes, verified information isn’t readily available, and school districts often are not quick to address allegations publicly for a litany of reasons.
When determining what information to release to the public, schools should prioritize the safety and privacy of students, Anderson said. School districts have valid reasons not to release certain information about investigations, especially if that information could harm the victim or someone who has been accused but not convicted.
“We get accused a lot on the school side of covering things up,” Anderson said. “We’re not covering things up. We’re worried about the lawsuit from the parents that we have violated a student’s constitutional bodily right to integrity.”
While incidences of child abuse appear to be increasing across the nation, Anderson said she wants people to remember that bad actors are still the minority. She also said she believes people are more aware of abuse than they once were, so it is reported more frequently than it once was.
“Overall, the educators that I have met and interacted with care for children and are appropriate with children,” Anderson said. “It still is the one-off who isn’t. It still is an outlier. We’re worried about it, and we should be.”
Schools should educate students about recognizing and reporting misconduct and abuse, Anderson said. Abusers often lie and make threats to children that are not true, and children should be armed with that knowledge.
Most importantly, parents should have conversations with their children about what kind of conduct is appropriate and inappropriate with adults, Anderson said.
“I really want us to see more and better bridging of the gap with education for students so they feel empowered to know what to do in these circumstances because they may face them in any number of places,” Anderson said.
How people should respond
No matter when an allegation is made, everyone who hears it – from administrators and law enforcement to parents and community members – should want to know the truth and refrain from making judgment calls without having all of the facts. People’s lives can be ruined by false allegations; Anderson has seen it happen.
“People believe what they first hear sometimes, and so it’s life-altering sometimes for people,” she said. “That lie is always going to be a little more interesting than the actual truth with all the factors.”
People must set aside their assumptions, biases and preconceived ideas.
“We all have to fight the urge to believe the person that we like or believe the person that we relate to or believe the person that we heard from first,” she said. “With a little information, people have a lot of opinions. And I like to encourage people to gather the facts. Just admit what you don’t know.”
Howdy! I’m Jordan Green, a Report for America corps member covering underserved communities in East Texas for the Longview News-Journal. I’m a native Okie and have been a newsman since 2017. Email me at jordan.green@news-journal.com or call me at 903-237-7743.