Principal April Jewell lost a bid to suppress evidence sought by parents suing her and Lorena Independent School District over a teacher’s sexual abuse of their then-5-year-old daughter.
But a federal judge limited the scope of the requested evidence and ordered the documents to remain confidential “to protect the integrity of Jewell’s ongoing administrative proceeding” with the Texas Education Agency.
The abused girl’s parents filed a federal lawsuit against Lorena ISD and Jewell in 2023, after long-term substitute teacher Nicolas Crenshaw pleaded guilty to molesting female students in his pre-K classroom at Lorena Primary School, where Jewell was (and remains) the principal.
The lawsuit accuses Jewell of turning a blind eye to concerns raised about Crenshaw’s behavior.
Last month, the parents filed a subpoena for documents from a TEA proceeding against Jewell’s professional certification.
The TEA asserts that Jewell’s conduct surrounding the sex abuse scandal violated the Texas Educators’ Code of Ethics and should result in revocation of her teaching certificate.
Jewell filed a motion to quash the subpoena entirely or to limit the documents TEA would provide in the federal case and who can see them.
The principal argued that the administrative law judge who presided over the TEA’s case against her on April 13 had ordered the details kept secret, in part because the publicity would compromise her “rights to fair proceedings.”
The abused girl’s parents argued that Jewell’s motion to quash or modify the subpoena should be denied for lack of standing and other issues, and that her motion for a modified protective order should also be denied “because a robust Protective Order already exists in this lawsuit, which Plaintiff (unlike Defendants) has never violated.”
“Jewell cannot prevent disclosure of relevant evidence based on a seal order that resulted from her own failure to comply with a protective order,”
Following a May 1 hearing in a Waco federal court, U.S. Magistrate Judge Dan MacLemore denied Jewell’s motion to quash, stating that the parents are entitled to receive certain documents from the TEA case against Jewell.
But he also gave deference to the ALJ’s protective order.
MacLemore’s May 7 order on the discovery disputes modified the subpoena, limiting the agency’s required production to “documents concerning complaints made to the TEA about any employee-on-student harassment, misconduct, abuse, grooming, or other similar sexually inappropriate behavior for the time period the subpoena specifies and any related investigations.”
The judge also ordered any documents produced by the TEA to be designated for “Attorneys Eyes Only.”
Administrative Judge Ross Henderson has not yet ruled in the TEA’s case against Jewell’s certification.
A trial in the federal suit against Jewell and Lorena ISD is scheduled for April 2027 but could be postponed, as the judge currently assigned to the case is retiring in August.
Discovery in the case was put on hold when Jewell sought to have the case against her dismissed by claiming qualified immunity, but the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected her immunity claim.
Such immunity shields school officials from federal civil liability unless their conduct violates a clearly established constitutional right to an extent that is considered conscience-shocking.
“Thank goodness for public officials who understand that accountability is never optional,” State Rep. David Cook (R–Mansfield) posted to X.
A federal magistrate judge just rejected efforts by Lorena ISD and Principal April Jewell to quash a subpoena tied to the horrific abuse committed by a former teacher. In earlier civil proceedings, the court found that Jewell’s “lack of executive action” in response to warnings “shocks the conscience.”
“When leadership at schools fails at the top and then tries to keep records from coming to light, it raises serious concerns about transparency, accountability, and the safety of our children,” added Cook.
Lorena ISD is preparing for a change in top leadership.
Trustees announced this week that they chose Bartlett ISD Superintendent Teddy Clevenger as the lone finalist to replace retiring Superintendent Joe Kucera.
Kucera has headed the district for 10 years, including while Crenshaw was systematically molesting 4- and 5-year-old girls on Jewell’s campus.
After a state-required 21-day waiting period, the board will vote on whether to officially hire Clevenger. If accepted, Clevenger will inherit the unresolved lawsuit and supervision of Jewell, among other district concerns.
Lorena parents have been calling for Jewell to resign or be fired since 2024, when they first learned about the lawsuit and Jewell’s alleged negligence through social media reports.
