Providence, RI: A former gym teacher in Providence will get jail time this summer for touching girls in a bad way at an elementary school.
An R.I. Attorney General’s office spokesperson said that after a four-day hearing, a jury found 59-year-old James Duffy guilty of four counts of simple assault and one count of second-degree child molestation.
Between 2014 and 2017, the things that happened happened while Duffy was teaching PE at Kizirian Elementary School. The victims, who were 11 and 12 years old at the time, said Duffy touched them inappropriately during gym class and lunch.
“Every day, parents send their children to school trusting their kids will be well-supervised and well cared for. For these victims and their parents, these crimes have forever impacted their lives,” Neronha said in a news release. “I commend the courage of the victims in this case for their bravery in coming forward.”
People other than Duffy were involved in the case because school officials didn’t tell the R.I. Department of Children, Youth, and Families about the accusations against him. The state requires people to report suspected or confirmed cases of child abuse within 24 hours of learning about them. Superintendent Violet LeMar was charged with a misdemeanor and later found guilty.
Duffy will be given his sentence on July 11.