L.A. school at center of a sex abuse scandal
Parents at an elementary school in Los Angeles were horrified last week when a teacher was accused of taking sexually suggestive photos of students. Then, just days later, another teacher at the same school was arrested. On Monday night, officials tried to quell nerves by removing all the teachers and staff. CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker looks at the tense situation happening at the school.
Teachers at Miramonte Elementary School in South Los Angeles cleared out their classrooms today while protesting parents with banners chanted: "We want answers! We want answers."
Frustrated and angry, parents of Miramonte school children have descended on the campus since news broke last week of allegations of sexual abuse by two male teachers. So many showed up for a meeting with school officials last night, hundreds couldn't get in.
"We want justice!" some chanted.
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Kimberly Kirklin is pulling her three daughters out of the school.
"Oh yeah, it's an inside job," she said. "There's a lot more than we're aware of. There's a lot more going on."
Miramonte serves a dense, low-income, largely Latino community. With 1,500 students, it's one of the largest elementary schools in the country. Cal State LA psychology professor, Mitchell Eisen, says it's not unusual for abuse of children to go undetected.
TO COME, TO COME, TO COME, TO COME, TO COME, TO COME, TO COME, TO COME.
School superintendent John Deasy says every adult who worked at the school is being questioned.
"There are interviews going on about whether students are in any danger and when allegations come up, we investigate it," he said.
But two former students, now adults, tell CBS News that as far back as 1990, they complained of teacher Mark Berndt's lewd behavior in the classroom, and were told to stop inventing stories. In 1994, Berndt was investigated for inappropriately touching a girl, but the evidence was considered too weak to file charges.
"I feel disgusted, angry," said a parent. "I mean, how could the school let this go on for a long time?"
