Expert: Michael Troy - 5/28/2010

Question
Mr. Troy,

   I am looking for some guidance in a situation I have unfortunately incurred. I am a teacher for ten years in Pre-K.  
I have been a child educator and babysitter for 15 yrs. I love teaching and working with kids. I am planning on going back to school to further my education career.  

  Last week, a student mentioned to me and another teacher about sexual abuse at his home.  As a teacher, I must report any accusation about abuse and inform the police and other agencies, such as Child Services.  A report was made and sent out to the agencies to investigate.  A couple of days later, the parents entered the school harassing the staff and accused myself, another teacher and the director of  filing a false report then stating we sexual abusing their child. An investigation was made and I was question by police and other agencies. The investigation is pending but the police feel the charges will be dropped.

   However I am distraught, stressed out, and feeling sick from the whole situation. I have so many questions but am not getting any answers. Will this accusation be on my record?  Can I still become a teacher and start up my tutoring agency with these accusations? My husband is furious about this and says we should sue for defamation and slander. I think the parents should be held responsible for the false claims. Can I sue for this if the charges are dropped?  I just want to go back to teaching but I am afraid if the accusations get out I will lose my tutoring and babysitting jobs as well as working with kids. Please any help in this matter would be appreciated.

Answer
Hello,

I cannot provide legal advice in this forum, but I will say generally that if someone makes a false statement about you to others that defames your reputation, you can certainly take action against them.  The accusation may follow you, whether you fight it or not.  Many people bring libel actions to force the accuser to retract the claim and make an apology, in order to clear their names.  You may want to speak with an attorney in your area if you want to explore such a suit.

- Mike