A Laurens County, South Carolina courtroom was the setting today for one of the biggest shockers of the year regarding sex scandals between school teachers and their students.
Much to the shock and amazement of local residents and observers, Allenna Williams Ward, the 24-year-old middle school teacher accused of having sex with five black teenage boys, accepted a plea bargain and plead guilty to five charges of sexual misconduct.
Ward waived her right to a jury trial and broke into sobs as she admitted to the charges and apologized for the pain she had caused the students and their families, and the community.
In exchange for Ward's pleading guilty to five counts of sexual misconduct, the local Circuit Solicitor dropped the rest of the charges against Ward, which could have potentially sent her to prison for the rest of her life.
Surrounded by her parents and her husband in the courtroom, Ward asked for the forgiveness of the community.
Ward's sentence now rests entirely in the hands of the local judge, who will reportedly make his decision within 90 days.
The Ward case provides an intriguing twist in attempts to profile typical perpetrators of sexual misconduct between teachers and students. Ward never fit the profile. In fact, the story told by the teenagers involved in the case is so bizarre that few in or outside the community believed that such a thing could be true.
The teenagers had accused Ward of meeting them at various places around Clinton, South Carolina for their sexual activity, including behind a restaurant, in a motel room, in a city park, in a vehicle, as well as in the Bell Street Middle School, where Ward taught 7th grade Language Arts.
While few believed the stories, in this case the perpetrator herself says they are true. The damage done to the five teenagers should not go unpunished.
Ward would be an interesting case study in forensic psychology as the question is posed, how could a seemingly clean-cut girl from a minister's family, with no prior history indicating her behavior, wind up in this position where she faces potential jail time for engaging in sexual misconduct with five teenagers?
As far as we are concerned, that is the million-dollar question.
Thursday, September 06, 2007
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19 comments:
The rogue prosecutor turns out not to be a rogue prosecutor at all, but one who is cognizant of the rules defining what can and cannot be said about a pending case. Although disturbed about the comparison to Mike Nifong, he knew what the facts were and the strength of the case. He did not investigate it and had nothing to do with the charges until it came time for the prosecution of the case. He understands that some people are not aware of how the system operates in SC and was patient with certain inaccurate and uninformed comments. He does appreciate the recognition of the guilt of the defendant and the need for appropriate punishment.
You would be quite correct, and I was wrong. It is clear at this vantage-point, i.e., hindsight, that Mr. Peace knew what he was doing and did so with utmost integrity and discretion.
He is to be commended for a job well-done.
D. Martyn Lloyd-Morgan
Do you think anything like the full story will ever come out? Why is the media so hands off on this one?
Personally, no. I do not think the full story will ever be told, unless Allenna Williams Ward herself decides to tell it.
I don't think it is the media that is so hands-off as much as Ward and her family--and her attorney--are mum. There has been complete silence.
Apparently this is the way they want it.
Why do you think the judge is taking
so long to hand down the sentence?
My understanding was that at the outset it was going to take the judge 90 days to 6 months to issue the sentence. This could be due to the backlog of cases in the county.
Other than that, I have no idea...
Wow. I didn't know she pleaded guilty until I came back onto this site for the first time in months.
It sounds to me like the woman was just a whore. I hate to put it that way. But there's no other explanation.
I feel sorry for her husband. If this guy sticks by her, he deserves a medal.
Uhhh, well....ahem...I choose to take a more psycho-social approach. A woman who acts in this way, as a sexual predator with no prior history of such behavior, is a case for psychiatry.
In short, she is very ill.
I agree she's ill and needs psychiatric help. But where I come from, someone like this is a whore. It doesn't mean that I hate her or anything. I just don't see the need to tip-toe around the truth.
She does need help. I honestly feel sorry for her, and her family. And I feel sorry for the victims and families of her victims.
In a town the size of Clinton (I've been there twice, and it's small), I can only imagine how her family must feel when they go out into town.
If her husband is still with her after all this, he deserves a medal (as I said in the other comment). I'm not sure I could hang with a woman that did what she did. Matter of fact, I know I couldn't. The shock would just be too much.
you are right - my son - deserves a medal!
If that is your son and you're not making it up, I want to say to you and him "God Bless you Both".
I can not imagine being in your shoes.
I'm not making it up. I wish to God I was. I have followed this blog for months because it was about the only one that tried to look at it with an objective view. My son was raised to do what is right. He is a good man who loved her deeply. Even though he has been hurt to the core, he still wants what is best for her and her family. The situation calls for her to be at her home. She is under house arrest. He is doing the best he can with a very horrible situation. We all are. Many family members on both sides are affected deeply by this sad sad situation. No matter what the outcome there is no good one.
Anon,
You all certainly are in our thoughts and prayers through this nightmare.
And thanks for your complimentary words about the blog. I actually attempted some advocacy for Ms. Ward, if for no other reason than to serve as a reminder that every accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Additionally, there has been something about this case all along that has been deeply disturbing to me, not the least of which is the woman at the center of it, who certainly seemed to be anything but the type of person who would do the things of which she was accused.
Her husband is to be commended for standing with her...she is going to need support, given the severity of her illness.
To Anon (the parent of the husband),
You have a great son. And you have my prayers, for what that's worth.
I can not imagine what you and your son must be going through.
What's the latest on her sentencing? It's been 3 months since she pled guilty.
Haven't heard a word yet. As soon as I know, you'll know.
poor lady, she got caught trying to get what daddy told her he'd kick her ass for trying!
this is easy, and as far as it being racial, it definitely is!
black teens are very aggressive sexually, and she just got a sexual overload she could not stop.....and she liked it.
are the teens damaged?...lol..been there, and i wasn't.
she should be sentenced to community time to feel the wrath of her neighbors, cause those guys are laughing all the way to the next white girl they nail!
"Itsmyparty..."...
I think a lot of what you're saying is true. People want to dance around what really happened. But you cut through the chase in what you just said.
People have to realize, this sort of stuff has been going on since the dawn of man. The only reason these incidents come to the forefront now is because of the internet. Everyone has a computer, everyone has a cell phone. It seems like society's main form of communication is through text messages, and e-mail. While convenient, they also leave an electronic paper trail that authorities can easily track. I'm willing to bet if this exact same thing would've happened twenty years prior, nothing would've happened. Why, because without any physical evidence, you basically would have a "he said/she said", type of scenario. It was said that she spoke out vehemently against teacher/student relations back in high school and college. She was young, attractive, educated, and came from a seemingly strong Christian faith. This just goes to show you can never judge a book by it's cover. At the end of the day though, we all have our want's, needs, and desires. Not excusing what happened, because that is never acceptable. But, it seemed she never had the chance to "sow her wild oats", and got married and had kids, while barely out of school herself. Many women her age have casual hook-ups once they're in college, and not under the watchful gaze of parental authorities. She was probably regularly propositioned by those teenagers and felt flattered, especially barely being out of her teens herself. She unfortunately made the mistake of letting her carnal desires get the best of her. This may have been what that forensic psychiatrist meant when saying Allena had a "repressed childhood" and did not consider her a pedophile. Like I said, if this exact scenario happened 20+ years ago, this would've never came to light, because 1) It would be too unbelievable to the general public, 2) No one would care enough to pursue it legally. At worst, I'd be an open secret around the school among students, about the hot to trot language arts teacher providing "extra tutoring" after school. At 15, their is no way I'd see myself as a victim, contrary to the law. Those guys will probably tell their "war stories" about this for years to come.
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