new Middle School at Parkside
A man who attempted to steal school property while working as a substitute teacher in March recently accepted a plea deal in Jackson County Circuit Court.
(File Photo)
Benjamin Nathan Ross, 36.
JACKSON, MI - A man who attempted to steal school property while working as a substitute teacher in March recently accepted a plea deal in Jackson County Circuit Court.
Benjamin Nathan Ross, 36, pleaded guilty to one count of larceny from a building Friday, Sept. 23, in Circuit Court Judge John McBain's courtroom.
Ross admitted on March 30, while working as a substitute teacher at Jackson's Middle School at Parkside, he intentionally removed three violins from the school and hid them in a bush outside for later retrieval.
All of Jackson County's traditional public school districts get substitute teachers through the Jackson County Intermediate School District, which contracts with EDUStaff for the service. All persons becoming substitute teachers through this service are pre-screened and must pass criminal background checks.
Parkside Principal Jeremy Patterson told police that, while walking through the school's courtyard on March 30, he was approached by an orchestra student who told him Ross was acting strangely, had left the classroom with several violins and did not return with them, according to a police report.
Associate Principal Erik Weatherwax told Patterson he had video surveillance of Ross removing instruments from the classroom and exiting the building with them. In reviewing the footage, Ross was seen exiting the building on two separate occasions, placing the instruments in the bushes.
Patterson and Weatherwax recovered the violins, returned them to the classroom and notified police. Ross' time at the school was done and he had already left for the day by the time the violins were recovered.
Ross is currently out on bond. He is scheduled for sentencing at 9 a.m., Nov. 2.