A first-grade teacher who had previously been investigated was arrested Monday for misconduct with a 6-year-old, according to NBC Miami 6.
Damian Francis, teacher at Broward County Public Schools in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has been charged with lewd and lascivious conduct while being held with a $65,000 bail, according to NBC Miami 6. The arrest comes after a student reported that Francis would touch and rub her legs when helping her with classwork. (RELATED: Fifth-Grade Teacher Accused With Sex Crimes Against 13-Year-Old Student)
“The District is aware of the arrest,” Broward County Public Schools told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “This individual is being reassigned to a position away from the school and students. We defer to the Lauderhill Police Department for any additional information.”
Francis had been moved to a different class in January following a several month investigation into similar allegations, Local 10 News reported.
Robby Herto (L) helps the younger children (L-R) Tyler Leblant, Tiara McKelvin, Zackary Herto, Alex Leblant and Michaela McKelvin pass time with a game of Monopoly 04 September, 2004, in a classroom at Manatee elementary school near Melbourne, Florida. The school was opened as an emergency shelter and quickly filled to over 800 people in advance of approaching category 2 Hurricane Frances that is predicted to make landfall near Fort Pierce along Florida’s East Central coast Saturday. (Photo credit BRUCE WEAVER/AFP via Getty Images)
In March, the 6-year-old student in the recent case told her mother she did not want to wear skirts or shorts anymore because Francis had been touching her and she felt “uncomfortable,” the NBC Miami 6 reported. Francis then told police in March, “I shouldn’t have been hugging or touching them.”
“I’m in shock,” a parent told NBC Miami 6. “That is unacceptable. They are innocent babies.”
Lauderhill Police Department did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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