Authorities investigating if delayed report of sexual relationship in McKeesport schools is criminal
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The Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing whether McKeesport School District employees failed to alert state authorities to an alleged sexual relationship between a district employee and a teenage student or delayed reporting their suspicions and, if so, whether their actions were criminal.
Allegheny County Police in January charged Alexis Brown, a 24-year-old McKeesport High School security guard, with having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student in spring 2023.
The alleged relationship was not reported to state officials until November, Gary Matta, the school district’s solicitor, said Wednesday.
In Pennsylvania, a mandated reporter — which includes school employees — is required “to make an immediate and direct report” to ChildLine, the state’s child abuse hotline, when they suspect child abuse, state education and human services officials said Wednesday in a joint statement.
Educators who know about action “which may constitute sexual abuse or exploitation or sexual misconduct” also must file a mandatory report with the state Department of Education, the officials said.
A mandated reporter “who willfully fails to report a case of suspected child abuse” might be committing a felony, they said.
Matta said he learned about the alleged sexual relationship in December, about a month after someone made a ChildLine report.
The school district hired the Pittsburgh-area law firm Dillon, McCandless, King, Coulter and Graham LLP to investigate after the alleged relationship was not reported to the solicitor’s office in “a timely manner,” Matta said.
“The investigation centered around when we knew about it and who knew it,” David Donato, a McKeesport school board member, told TribLive on Wednesday.
The law firm did not return phone calls on Wednesday.
“We’re not a law enforcement agency,” Donato added. “But, we’d like everyone else who is to do their job.”
The DA’s review comes days after a surprise announcement that Superintendent Tia Wanzo will take a three-month medical leave, then retire in November. Her leave took effect Aug. 14.
The district will pay Wanzo $173,250 in severance — roughly the equivalent of one year of salary, Matta said.
In return, Wanzo has agreed to not sue the district, according to a separation agreement obtained by TribLive.
Wanzo has a valid and active superintendent PK-12 certificate, a state Department of Education spokeswoman said Wednesday.
“Educator misconduct complaints are confidential unless and until public professional discipline is imposed against an educator’s certificate,” the spokeswoman said.
It remains unclear — at least to the public — when Wanzo became aware of the alleged sexual relationship between the former security guard and the student.
Wanzo and her attorney did not return phone calls or emails Wednesday seeking comment.
Brown no longer works for the school district, Matta said Wednesday. The student, who authorities did not name, transferred out of the district before the 2023-24 academic year.
Matta declined further comment on what he called a personnel issue.
County police in January charged Brown with having sex with the student in her McKeesport apartment 15 times starting in May 2023, a criminal complaint said.
The teen told police Brown first contacted him through social media. They began texting each other.
Those conversations became sexual in nature, the complaint said, when Brown told him there was a bet among her friends about who could have sex with the teen first.
Brown was charged with having sexual contact with a student, corruption of minors and unlawful contact with a minor.
Prosecutors in April dropped the unlawful contact charge as the case headed to Allegheny County Common Pleas court, online records show.
Her trial is set to start Sept. 25.
The Allegheny County Public Defender’s Office, which is representing Brown, declined to comment on Wednesday.
Wanzo, who graduated from McKeesport High School in 1997, was named superintendent in 2022.
The McKeesport resident spent her entire career in the school district she attended and taught at three district schools before becoming assistant principal at Founders’ Hall Middle School, the school’s website said.
The regional school district serves about 3,500 students from Dravosburg, McKeesport, South Versailles, Versailles and White Oak.