San Antonio Teen Assaulted On The Way To School

Another post from www.keepschoolssafe.org

Again, I want to say first that I do not want to be an alarmist but after reading the news report on what happened to a young San Antonio girl while walking to school, I feel that the word should be spread as much as possible. According to My SA News, a 15-year-old girl was walking to school when she was approached by a man who then put a knife to her throat. The online news report has more details:

Police Chief William McManus said the victim, a 15-year-old, was walking
near Vista Nogal Street just north of the school when a man approached,
brandished a knife and demanded she give him her cell phone.

The man then changed his mind, put the knife to the student’s throat
and ordered her to take off her clothes, McManus said. The man then sexually
assaulted her in a wide ditch that runs parallel to Vista Nogal.

To be fair to the school and its authorities, they have not turned a blind eye to the situation. As a matter of fact, the school principal of Churchill High School, Jeff Vaughan, immediately sent out letters to parents that day. In the letters sent, he emphasized the importance of reminding the school children of safety habits that they should practice while walking to and from school. This simple move was in fact much appreciated by the parents and I understand quite well how that could be the case. If I were a parent with children going to that school, that move would reassure me that the school is aware of what is going on and that they will not let things slide.
Sending out a letter may seem trivial to some but I think that it is also a representation of how the school authorities address safety issues in general.

One interesting that I noticed in that article is the fact that the parents seem to have utmost confidence in the school authorities. The parents quoted in the article expressed their faith in the school’s safety measures and the people involved as well. I think that this kind of thinking is important. It actually hits two birds with one stone - the authorities feel the sense of responsibility even more and the parents rest assured that everything that can be done is being done. Of course, this is not to say that parents should not be vigilant themselves.