Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland: Outside Expert Sought To Evaluate School Bus Driver Charged with Sexual Assault

Friday, May 31, 2019

Outside Expert Sought To Evaluate School Bus Driver Charged with Sexual Assault

The lawyer defending a former Montgomery County school bus driver accused of sexually abusing four students is rejecting the state’s finding that his client is competent to stand trial.

Etienne Kabongo, 62, of Gaithersburg, is charged with one count each of sexual abuse of a minor, second-degree rape and third-degree sexual-offense stemming from a July 2018 incident involving a 12-year-old girl.

Further investigation uncovered three other alleged assaults against students.

Defense attorney Jim Shalleck requested a state psychiatric evaluation of Kabongo in January and said he planned to pursue an insanity defense.

The state Department of Health found Kabongo competent to stand trial in a May 10 report, but at a Thursday morning hearing, Shalleck disputed the findings and said he is searching for an outside expert to evaluate his client...

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/courts/outside-expert-sought-to-evaluate-school-bus-driver-charged-with-sexual-assault/

2 comments:

AnonymousMay 31, 2019 at 11:42 AM
"Not sane enough to stand trial but sane enough to work for MCPS, apparently."
Committing an insane act qualifies as a legal loophole?
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AnonymousJune 2, 2019 at 9:18 AM
The bigger question is:
Who's evaluating the outside experts?
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Principles

Formed in 2002, the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland seeks to achieve the goals of coherent, content-rich curriculum standards; high expectations combined with timely remediation and acceleration; a wider range of educational options for parents and children; greater transparency and accountability; and meaningful community input.

E-mail: parentscoalitionmc AT outlook.com

What The Washington Post said about the Parents' Coalition

The coalition might be the best-known parent advocacy group in the region. Its members represent several constituencies, including parents of special education and gifted education students and fiscal watchdogs. The group's defining victory came this school year when the school system scaled back the fees charged to families for course materials.

Coalition leaders have drawn attention to the misuse of funds collected from students for activities, the broadcast of a commercial radio service on school buses and, with their "Weast Watch" blog, the travel habits of Weast and his lieutenants.

The Washington Post, June 4, 2009

Jerry Weast on the Parents' Coalition

"Along the way, you’ve had a challenging relationship with the Parents’ Coalition, the network of citizen activists who use the political process and other means to hold MCPS accountable.

The thing people accuse me of is listening, but not hearing. I hear, but I do not always agree. I am sorry that the world is faster than it was 10 years ago. I did not do that. [But] if we do not keep up, then our kids will be behind. We have to stop whining and get real."

Bethesda Magazine, March-April 2011