John Paul pleads not guilty to charge of assaulting seventh-grade student
- Jasz Garrett
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Mother says child has returned to school and feels 'more comfortable' now that JSD announced principal is not returning to Dzantik'i Héeni campus
By Jasz Garrett
Juneau Independent
This story has been updated to note John Paul is a former principal. Editor's note: The student's mother is not identified to protect the student's identity.
John Paul, 57, was arraigned in Juneau’s Dimond Courthouse on Thursday on a charge of assault. His attorney pleaded not guilty on his behalf.
Paul, the former principal of Montessori Borealis and Yaaḵoosgé Daakahídi High School at the Dzantik'i Héeni campus, was charged with one count of assault involving purposeful or reckless injury (a Class A misdemeanor) on April 6. The charge alleges he threw a seventh-grade student to the ground on March 5, according to court records.
His attorney, John Roberson III, previously told the Independent, "Mr. Paul denies that his conduct was criminal, and he is presumed innocent. Out of respect for the legal process, we won't have further comment at this time."
Paul's pretrial date is scheduled for June 15 at 2:30 p.m. Judge Peggy McCoy defined the conditions of release as having no contact with the student or the student's mother, who said she supported those conditions.
The student's mother, in a phone interview after the hearing, said her child has since returned to school and feels safe.
"He certainly feels more comfortable since the principal's not at the school," she said.
Paul was placed on administrative leave the same day the incident occurred. Lori Hoover has been the acting principal at Montessori and YDHS since March 5. On Friday, the Juneau School District announced Scott Jonsson as the new principal.
"I think the school, the district itself, handled it extremely well," the mother said. "They reached out to me. They were very responsive. They took it seriously. I'm happy with how they handled it so far."
The mother said she questions if previous reports about Paul’s conduct with other students have been made to JSD. She said she also wonders why he was placed on administrative leave. As of Friday, the district announced he is no longer employed.
JSD officials said they cannot discuss details of the incident, including why Paul was put on leave, due to confidentiality rules involving district personnel.
The student's mother said in the video she has of the alleged assault, it's "egregious" that "my child was doing nothing that would initiate any reason for him being slammed down on the ground and being laid on top of and then slammed up against the brick walls and having an adult yell at him two inches from his face."
She said what she put in the police report is "word for word" what occurred in the video of the incident.
"He wasn't doing anything that would have provoked such a graphic and violent situation," she said.
The student's mother said the district is short-staffed and "across the board, I don't think that kids in our district that have special needs are getting their needs met the way that they should, but I also think that the school and the district is doing the best they can with the staff that they have."
• Contact Jasz Garrett at jasz@juneauindependent.com or (907) 723-9356.
