Twenty years of warnings that one of their janitors was an alleged pedophile weren’t enough to spur the Saint Paul Police…
Yesterday, Ramsey County officials announced they’ve hit [former SPPS janitor Walter] Happel with a smorgasboard of new charges, including first-degree criminal sexual conduct, three counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct, one count of fifth-degree criminal sexual conduct, and five counts of surreptitious invasion of privacy.
The new charging documents don’t exactly bathe the St. Paul police or Linwood Monroe in glory, as both allegedly ignored credible warnings Happel was a pedophile.
The allegations now facing Happel are Sandusky-esque — there are too many alleged victims to share each and every one of their stories in one report. But with regard to the 1991 case, after news of the initial charge against Happel broke a couple months ago, Happel’s son, identified as “AH” in charging documents, came forward to tell police his father sexually abused him from the time he was four until he was 14 or 15.
…or Saint Paul Public Schools…
As far as the Linwood Monroe allegations are concerned, yet another charging document says that when a parent (“AB”) talked to a school social worker this past winter to share concerns about Happel brandishing his penis in a school bathroom to their child, the social worker said Happel “had been there forever and wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
“AB later called the school and spoke with a woman about the incident, but she never got a return call from anyone with the school,” the charging document continues. “AB finally reported the incident to the police.”
Yet another charging document says school officials didn’t tell police about a January 17, 2014 incident where Happel allegedly “lightly slapped a student’s behind” and said, “I told you I was going to do that if you sagged your pants,” even though just a week earlier, the school principal received an email from a parent who was concerned about Happel giving candy to two students who didn’t have father figures in their lives.
…into action.
The story – by the City Pages Aaron Rupar – gets worse. Much worse.
So – will local journos start poring over the SPPS’ records, looking to elevate incompetence and institutionalism into a cover-up?
Or are they too exhausted from all the time they’ve spent going after the Archdiocese of Saint Paul?
Or are they too exhausted from all the time they’ve spent going after the Archdiocese of Saint Paul?
Depends. If Jeff Anderson writes the articles for them, they’ll pursue it.
Pffffft. That’s nothing. SPPS had a fucking pederast on the board for years. The voters are getting exactly what they want.
While I note Swiftee’s reference to former SPPD board prez Al Oertwig, I’ll add that Oertwig was never convicted of anything.
Oertwig had some odd diversions and, er, peccadillos. But I have no desire to be part of some enterprising lawyer’s test case on electronic defamation; the case would be tenuous, but the bills would not.
As Joel Rosenberg liked to emphasize, “Test cases are for other people.”
Perhaps SPPS needs a zero tolerance policy for pedophilia. It is their solution to gun drawings, pop tart eating and finger pointing.