Lawyers for the Lorena Independent School District and Principal April Jewell are asking to interrogate a traumatized 10-year-old girl who was sexually abused by a pre-K teacher when she was 5.
They argue their clients are “entitled” to depose the young victim about how she suffered due to the abuse, so they can defend themselves against her family’s claims that they failed to protect the girl.
Attorneys for the girl—identified as Jane Doe in court documents to shield her identity—oppose the plan, asserting questions about the abuse will re-traumatize Jane.
They have asked the court for a protective order barring defendants Lorena ISD and Jewell from deposing the child.
A hearing on the discovery dispute is set for July 28 in Waco.
Abuse Victim’s Family Sues Lorena ISD and April Jewell
The abused girl’s family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Lorena ISD and Jewell in 2023, after long-term substitute teacher Nicolas Crenshaw pleaded guilty to molesting Jane and another female student at Lorena Primary School, where Jewell was—and remains—the principal.
Crenshaw confessed to committing seven sexual felonies against the girls while in his pre-K classroom and was sentenced to 40 years in state prison.
The lawsuit accuses Jewell of turning a blind eye to multiple complaints about Crenshaw’s classroom behavior from several school employees and at least one student’s mother.
Discovery was on hold for two years while Jewell sought to have the case against her dismissed on the basis of qualified immunity. The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ultimately rejected the principal’s immunity claim, with one judge calling Jewell’s actions “a shocking betrayal of public trust in school administrators.”
The lawsuit finally proceeded and a trial date was set for April 2027.
As part of discovery, defense attorneys now seek to depose the young sex abuse victim.
Lorena ISD’s lawyers claim they are “entitled to explore … directly with the student” her “past, present, and future physical and psychological pain, suffering, and impairment” caused by Crenshaw’s sexual abuse.
The attorneys argue that questioning the girl is “fair play” for preparing a defense and assessing the damages sought by the family. They’ve asked the court to compel Jane to participate in a two-hour deposition, in which they will question the girl’s “alleged injuries” attributed to the “alleged events.”
“We fail to see the probative value of you deposing a 10-year-old child who was sexually abused,” the Does’ attorneys responded, adding that they do not intend to call Jane as a witness but instead will offer testimony from her parents, therapists, and other experts.
In a statement to the court, Jane’s mental health therapist asserted that the girl struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder and will suffer “irreparable harm” from such questioning.
She described the girl’s symptoms and trauma triggers, and stated that due to her young age and repeated traumatic abuse, the girl lacks the cognitive ability to answer questions about her past, present, and future injuries.
“It is not appropriate to expect a child to speak to the impact their trauma had on their life,” added the therapist.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Dan MacLemore is currently presiding over the case.
Attorneys Meredith Walker and Meghan Beytebiere with Walsh Gallegos are representing Lorena ISD; Dennis Eichelbaum, Andrea Mooney, and Regan Wilkins with Eichelbaum Wardell are representing Jewell.
Monica Beck and Jeff Green are representing Jane Doe’s family, along with Texas-based attorneys Chad Dunn and James Dunnam.
TEA Investigates Jewell
In addition to the civil lawsuit against her, Jewell is under investigation by the Texas Education Agency.
The TEA argued in an April 2026 administrative hearing that Jewell’s teaching certificate should be revoked due to her unethical conduct surrounding the sex abuse scandal.
Administrative Judge Ross Henderson has not yet ruled in the case.
In May, Jewell lost a bid to suppress evidence from the administrative hearing that the Does requested as part of their discovery in the civil suit.
Jewell argued against releasing the evidence against her because the publicity would compromise her “rights to fair proceedings.”
The Does noted that a discovery protective order was already in place—although attorneys for Lorena ISD admitted to violating the order by revealing the victim’s name in unredacted filings, calling the violation “an oversight.”
Judge MacLemore ordered TEA to produce documents concerning sexual misconduct complaints made to the agency and directed they be designated for “Attorneys Eyes Only.”
Lorena ISD Explores “Reputational Management”
The sexual abuse case and related litigation have caused continuing controversy within the community ever since Lorena parents discovered the allegations against Jewell and the district and revealed them to the public via social media.
That was in 2024—a year after the lawsuit was filed and three years after Crenshaw abused the girls.
Since then, Lorena parents have been calling for Jewell to resign or for the elected trustees to either fire Jewell or place the principal on leave. Some also called for the ouster of then-Lorena ISD Superintendent Joe Kucera, who announced his retirement earlier this year.
Local media began covering developments in the lawsuit and TEA investigation, highlighting concerns raised by parents and some state education officials about Lorena ISD keeping Jewell in charge of primary school students.
Documents recently obtained by parents show that in early 2026, Kucera considered hiring an outside public relations firm to help repair the district’s tarnished image and squelch unflattering media coverage.
A “confidential” Reputational Management proposal from RMG Digital Solutions offered to “reclaim Lorena ISD’s digital narrative” by creating “a ‘firewall’ of positive content” to “suppress” negative coverage found in online searches.
RMG’s quoted price: a taxpayer-funded “investment” of $1,950 a month.
District officials told the parents in April that Lorena ISD did not hire RMG or any other media relations company.
Texas Scorecard has contacted Lorena ISD Superintendent Teddy Clevenger, whom trustees hired in May to replace the retiring Kucera, and School Board President Denny Kramer, asking if they support the district’s legal strategy to question the 10-year-old former student about her sexual abuse by one of their teachers.
The next Lorena ISD school board meeting is scheduled for July 27, a day before the hearing to decide if Jane will be deposed.
Full coverage of the Lorena ISD sex abuse scandal and lawsuit can be found here.
