A teacher's assistant with the Clark County School District has been arrested for lewdness with a minor.
Fausto Barraza-Balcazar is accused of inappropriately touching a student, a 13-year-old autistic girl with the mental capacity of a 5-year-old.
According to police, Barraza-Balcazar was working at Jerome Mack Middle School last month when a teacher claims to have seen him touching a special needs student inappropriately.
A report by CCSD police said the teacher saw Barraza-Balcazar in the school's laundry room with his front pressed tightly against a 13-year-old autistic student's body. They were both clothed.
The report went on to say the girl told an investigator "Mr. B" touched her, then she pointed to her private areas.
The girl was taken to the hospital for a sexual assault exam but it came back negative.
"They're sending their kids to an environment where they are suppose to be protected from this kind of stuff," said Deborah Britton, a CCSD teacher's assistant.
School is out for the summer but there was a training session going on at Jerome Mack Middle School.
"It just makes the whole profession look bad because now parents, you know, they are a little leery, I mean, should I drop my son or daughter off, is he or she going to be safe, especially in special needs when they can't communicate," Britton said.
All CCSD employees must pass Nevada and FBI background checks.
"I don't know if it's a way they can do background checks more often, you just wonder how these people slip through the cracks," Britton said.
"I think CCSD needs to be more careful about the people they hire," said Maria, a member of CCSD's support staff.
CCSD issued a statement in regards to the arrest:
"We take this situation very seriously, however it's important to note that cases like this one are not reflective of our 40,000 employees. Additionally, CCSD is in the process of creating a resource page for parents so they have greater access to information regarding signs to watch for and the importance of monitoring their children's social media and electronic interactions."
