Grand jury to review Merkel abuse charges

Abilene Reporter News: Local: "A state probe of relationships between Merkel students and teachers paints a picture that suggests boundaries between coaches and students vanished years ago.

The six-month investigation by the state department of Child Protective Services, which investigates allegations of child abuse and neglect, is believed to be a first for the school district. The Taylor County Sheriff's Office assisted CPS with the investigation, which was prompted by a teacher's complaint in August.

No arrests have been made in the investigation, although District Attorney James Eidson is expected to present the findings of that investigation to a grand jury Thursday. A final report was presented to the school board in March.

Investigators looked into allegations and rumors spanning 20 years and conducted interviews with more than 100 people and wrote a report."

This, too, is a local story. And technically not about politics. But I do believe the supremacy of sports over all elso is still a theme common to most of Texas. And I also believe that a boy will be boys club mentality still prevails throughout most of the state. Finally, as a public school teacher, it sickens me.