Two school leaders identified as Tanya Barth and Lauryn Faciane were arrested in Covington, Louisiana, on Wednesday after police alleged the E.E. Lyon Elementary School principal and assistant principal failed to comply with the state'smandatory reporting law on suspected child abuse.
Louisiana law requires school staff to report suspected abuse or neglect promptly; authorities say the charges stem from an investigation by the Covington police Criminal Investigations Division and, because children are involved, officials will not disclose further details about the underlying allegations at this time.
Tanya Barth served as assistant principal and Lauryn Faciane was principal at E.E. Lyon Elementary School, information on the school's website shows. The St. Tammany Parish Public School System has said both no longer serve at Lyon but remain district employees while the matter proceeds.
The St. Tammany inmate roster shows that both women were arrested and released on the same day, with bonds set at $5,000 (£3,723.13) each. Police say each faces a charge of failure to comply with Louisiana's mandatory reporting law.
School administrators are required to report suspected abuse, neglect or other harmful incidents involving children to the proper authorities without delay.
Legal analyst Tanya Faia, speaking to local media, put it simply: 'Our laws are set in place to protect the most vulnerable in our society right, and who are more innocent and vulnerable than our children.'
At this stage, Covington police have offered no narrative of what was allegedly seen, heard or reported inside the school before the arrests. All they will confirm is that the Department of Children and Family Services, the Louisiana Department of Education and the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education have been formally notified.
While police keep the facts of the alleged abuse firmly under wraps, the lawyer for Barth and Faciane is already fighting the case in public. Attorney Roy Burns, who represents both women, told reporters the charges are 'baseless' and insisted they had followed the rules.
'They're not guilty,' he said. 'They did nothing, and we're going to fight it till the very end.'
Burns argues that his clients did exactly what the law expects by passing an incident to the school's resource police officer, the on‑campus law enforcement liaison. From his perspective, that should satisfy the mandatory reporting requirement and clear them of wrongdoing.
Source: International Business Times UK
