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APPEAL
FROM THE PULASKI COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT, SIXTH DIVISION [NO.
60CV-17-3366], HONORABLE TIMOTHY DAVIS FOX, JUDGE
Jeff
Rosenzweig, for appellant.
Callie
Corbyn, Office of Chief Counsel, for appellee.
OPINION
ROBERT
J. GLADWIN, Judge
J.C.
appeals the Pulaski County Circuit Courts order affirming
the administrative decision that he had committed sexual
abuse of a minor and that his name should be placed on the
Arkansas Child Maltreatment Central Registry.[1] J.C. argues
that the agencys decision is arbitrary, capricious, and an
abuse of discretion. We affirm.
I.
Facts
On
August 23, 2013, a report was made to the child-abuse hotline
regarding the alleged maltreatment of C.K., born September
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23, 1998. After an investigation by the Arkansas Department
of Human Service (DHS), a finding of child maltreatment was
entered against J.C., who timely requested a hearing. The
hearing was stayed due to pending criminal charges against
J.C. related to the alleged abuse of C.K., but those charges
were nolle prossed. An administrative hearing was held on
November 29, 2016. C.K. did not appear, but two videotaped
recordings of her interviews with investigators and her
written statement were admitted as evidence. C.K. alleged
that while she and J.C. were alone with her in his locked
classroom, J.C. put his hand down her pants and touched her
underneath her underwear on her private area. She also said
that he had kissed her. He later asked her forgiveness and
told her he had been praying about it.
Suzanne Harris, an investigator with the Crimes Against
Children Division (CACD) of the Arkansas State Police,
testified that she investigated C.K.s allegations and spoke
with her in a recorded interview. C.K. told Harris that she
would have lunch in J.C.s classroom and that he once had
tickled her. She said that they had gone to the River Market
together during lunch. C.K. told Harris that J.C. had touched
her on her "lady area" and on her butt. In her
written statement, C.K. stated that J.C. had put his hands
inside her panties and said he wanted to feel her once.
Harris testified that it was not uncommon for children to
delay disclosing sexual abuse or sexual contact. She said
that the basis for her true finding of sexual contact was
that after an in-depth interview with C.K. and reviewing
C.K.s written statement, Detective Trent of the Little Rock
Police Department sought an arrest warrant. Harris stated,
"We cant go against law enforcement." She also
said that after the charges had been dropped, her
"attitude toward the case" did not change. She said
that child-maltreatment law is different than criminal law.
Harris said that C.K.s shoplifting charge over the
"intervening weekend" had no bearing on her true
finding for sexual contact.
Harris
said that she spoke to Ms. Rook, who works at C.K.s school.
Ms. Rook told Harris that J.C. had talked to her about C.K.
being upset with him for giving her a "B." He had
told Rook that C.K. wanted to start a book club and that she
had been texting him. Rook also said that J.C. had stated
that he and C.K. had lunch together in his classroom; Rook
had told him that doing so was not a good idea; and J.C.
wanted to argue over the issue.
Harris
said that she had talked to J.C., who denied an interview but
told her he believed C.K.s allegation was in retaliation for
a grade of "86" that he had given her. Harris also
talked to C.K.s mother and obtained written statements from
other students.
J.C.
testified that he was C.K.s English teacher and that she had
eaten lunch with him in his classroom. In response to a
written allegation against him by another student, he said
that he had taken that student into the hallway to address
her wearing a tank top that exposed her cleavage. He said the
school had a strict dress-code policy, and the student had
violated the policy. He said that it was his job to reprimand
her, but ...