Education

State Senate Tightens Rules On Teacher Misconduct

SACRAMENTO (AP) ― The state Senate on Thursday unanimously approved legislation to revoke the licenses of teachers who plead no contest to certain sex crimes or drug offenses.

The bill by Republican Sen. Bob Margett of Arcadia closes a loophole in California's teacher credentialing law. It had allowed teachers charged with serious crimes to avoid automatically having their licenses suspended and later revoked by pleading no contest to a lesser offense.

The bill was prompted by an Associated Press investigation last year into sexual misconduct by teachers. It passed 40-0 and now goes to the Assembly.

The AP's investigation in California confirmed at least 313 cases in which teachers had been punished for sexual misconduct. That included dozens involving pleas of no contest, a common legal agreement that allows a defendant to avoid a trial or civil liability but still leads to conviction.

Margett's bill also would extend the statute of limitations for disclosing past teacher misconduct.

Under current California law, the results of misconduct allegations are sealed by the California Teacher Credentialing Commission after one year. That restricts the ability of school administrators to confirm a teaching candidate's complete record if they learn later that the applicant lied about his or her background.

Margett's legislation would make the records available for five years instead of one.

It is the second piece of legislation in California prompted by the AP's investigation.

Last month, the Senate passed a bill by Sen. Jack Scott, D-Pasadena, that would automatically suspend teachers' credentials if they have had their license revoked in another state for misconduct. Those teachers have been allowed to remain in the classroom while the credentialing commission investigates their case, a process that can sometimes take two or three years.

Scott's legislation also would require the credentialing commission to automatically revoke teachers' licenses if a criminal conviction has limited their contact with children. That bill also is awaiting action in the state Assembly.

Nationwide, the AP's report found 2,570 educators whose teaching credentials had been revoked, denied, surrendered or sanctioned between 2001 and 2005 following allegations of sexual misconduct.

The state credentialing commission sponsored the California bills after the AP published the results of its seven-month investigation in November.

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