BREAKING: D11 school board director's criminal record exposed during public meeting, school board to meet to consider action, Monday
*** THRESHING MACHINE EXCLUSIVE ***
The Colorado Springs District 11 School Board is calling a special meeting Monday to consider criminal records I revealed on Wednesday.
From the Colorado Springs School District 11 board of education web site
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that there will be a Special Board of Education meeting on Monday, October 31, 2005, at 12:00 noon to discuss whether the Board should take any action, and if so, what action, in connection with the information provided to the Board during the Citizens' Comments portion of the October 26, 2005 Board meeting regarding the criminal background of a Board member.
The special meeting has been called by the President of the Board, and will take place at 12:00 noon on October 31, 2005 in the Board Room at 1115 N. El Paso St. in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Meeting Agenda
(Regular meetings are broadcast live on Colorado Springs Cable Channel 16. I'm not sure about any broadcast of this special meeting.)
==================
The meeting is being called in response to my exposure of the criminal record of school board director, Eric Christen, as discussed in this post.
As a matter of public record, I have been able to obtain the criminal record of Colorado Springs District 11 School Board Director, Eric Christen, and I read that into the record at the October 26, 2005 D11 school board meeting, along with some important questions pertaining to his.
Coming soon to a school board near you
First, a little background as to why Christen's criminal history would be important:
Using the tools of (Bush's) No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) at the national level, and the infiltration of local school boards by private school advocates, the religious right is all about the destruction of public schools. They want it to be a corporate system. The long and short is that they want to indoctrinate this next generation of children with the military/industrial/evangelical/corporate culture in order to align America with the neocon vision from the inside out.
They want to control the curriculum to make sure that age-appropriate sex education is not taught in science class and that creationism is. They want to make sure that gay issues are taught as sinful, immoral and aberrational. They want Coke machines in the school hallways.
They use NCLB-mandated testing to fail public schools, close them down, take their money, and give them to private schools set up by out-of-state corporations (which ironically, but not accidentally, are NOT required by NCLB to test students).
They use the insidious device of vouchers, to take the money from already under-funded public school systems, to fund tuition for private and religious schools.
As with many Bush programs designed to destroy public institutions, the No Child Left Behind Act is a misnomer, is designed to leave behind the poor children. The level of voucher money that provided for in local proposals isn't enough to pay for any private school tuition. The economically disadvantaged will never be able to send their children to private school on voucher money alone. Only the middles and upper-middles will be able to benefit, many of who already have their children in these high-end schools.
In the last school board election, Colorado Springs District 11 was the national proving ground for a plan by wealthy Springs developer, Steve Schuck, a major player in the controversial national movement to install voucher systems in public schools.
Schuck's group backed four candidates with a total of $175,000 (yes, for local school board). Before anyone knew what happened, this "stealth" campaign succeeded in taking over the school board. One of their first actions was to close down the gay/straight alliance discussion group at Palmer High School.
Clearly the most extreme and destructive in the group is Eric Christen. Read about his antics here.
He and Schuck's group are very dangerous to public schools. There is something very wrong about private school advocates sitting as public school officeholders.
The character and moral fiber of our school board directors is perhaps more important to the Colorado Springs community than that of any other elected official, because they are fundamental caretakers of our children.
I have looked into Eric Christen's background and have turned up a criminal history that raises many questions pertaining to his service on the school board and on his support for candidates running in the November 1, 2005 election.
* From the the public records in Oregon which I obtained of one Eric Damien Christen, he is shown to have been convicted in February 1996 (Washington County, OR) of 2nd degree criminal mischief and sentenced to 9 years probation. (Note: I don't know yet the nature of the crime, and I am trying to secure court transcripts, but 9 years seems to me to be a long probation.)
* The records then show that Eric Christen was convicted in September of 2002 (Multnomah County, OR) of 3rd degree theft (court disposition: reduced to violation).
This second conviction occurs during the time in which the record indicates Eric Christen to still have been under probation for the 1996 conviction.
I am not able to find in the records any item indicating a violation probation, which raises the questions:
1) Did Eric Christen inform the Washington Cty courts that he had been charged with theft in Multnomah Cty?
2) Did Eric Christen inform the Multnomah Cty courts that he was under probation at the time he was convicted in the theft case?
3) Did Eric Christen have permission from Oregon authorities to leave the state and move to Colorado (which he appears to have done, one month after his conviction in the theft case)?
4) After his September 2002 sentencing in the theft case, Eric Christen came to Colorado Springs to declare residency for his candidacy for D11 school board. Did Steve Schuck and the others who funded Eric Christen's campaign know at that time that they were running a convicted criminal for school board? (We know he didn't inform the voters that he had these two convictions and was still in the criminal justice system ...tricked us on that one.)
5) Did Eric Christen disclose to the D11 school board and superintendent of schools that he was in fact on probation for the entire first year of his term serving on the board?
6) Eric Chirsten and Steve Shuck are backing three candidates for D11 for the November 1, 2005 election (Bob Latham, Carla Albers, Reginald Perry)
Has the vetting process to screen for criminal behavior improved since Schuck ran Eric Christen). How does this all reflect on their candidacies, as they are being funded and supported by people who have demonstrated their willingness to run a convicted criminal without disclosing, and that morality and honesty in a candidate are not as important as agenda?
After my remarks to the board, Eric Christen directed this threat to me:
"I hope you understand the meaning of slander because you are going to pay deeply ...Understand that the fable that you leveled tonight is going to come back to haunt you for the rest of your life."
Well, this is in fact his criminal record. I would welcome the opportunity to have him address these questions I've raised in any forum. Further, I hope that the special meeting of the school board on Monday will lead to a full investigation. Voters have a right to know. Parents have a right to know.
--Dave Therault
==================
Postscript:
As you can see I am not about to try to conceal my disdain for those who have as their goal, the dismantling of public education.
I salute the yellow school bus, just as I do the fire truck and the police cruiser.
Perhaps Schuck will consider funding advocacies for the privatization of other public services such as police and fire. George Bush could push out the No Fire House Left Standing Act, which would be used to mandate testing fire and police response:
"Let's see. Kinda looks like it took 3 minutes longer than it should have for you to respond on that last 911 call. We're going to have to pull funding for that new EMT truck. Oh, and we'll be closing down the Sand Creek police station. We're going to give the neighborhood a voucher which they're planning to use to hire a private militia."
But that will never happen, because police and fire services have no ideological culture which the neocons need to change to suit their corrupted view of America.
For more background, see:
* Cara DeGette's excellent analysis in the Colorado Springs Independent
* Excitable boy
Eric Christens path to public office
Indy's coverage of Eric Christen's conviction on road rage charges
==================
The Colorado Springs District 11 School Board is calling a special meeting Monday to consider criminal records I revealed on Wednesday.
From the Colorado Springs School District 11 board of education web site
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that there will be a Special Board of Education meeting on Monday, October 31, 2005, at 12:00 noon to discuss whether the Board should take any action, and if so, what action, in connection with the information provided to the Board during the Citizens' Comments portion of the October 26, 2005 Board meeting regarding the criminal background of a Board member.
The special meeting has been called by the President of the Board, and will take place at 12:00 noon on October 31, 2005 in the Board Room at 1115 N. El Paso St. in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Meeting Agenda
(Regular meetings are broadcast live on Colorado Springs Cable Channel 16. I'm not sure about any broadcast of this special meeting.)
==================
The meeting is being called in response to my exposure of the criminal record of school board director, Eric Christen, as discussed in this post.
As a matter of public record, I have been able to obtain the criminal record of Colorado Springs District 11 School Board Director, Eric Christen, and I read that into the record at the October 26, 2005 D11 school board meeting, along with some important questions pertaining to his.
Coming soon to a school board near you
First, a little background as to why Christen's criminal history would be important:
Using the tools of (Bush's) No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) at the national level, and the infiltration of local school boards by private school advocates, the religious right is all about the destruction of public schools. They want it to be a corporate system. The long and short is that they want to indoctrinate this next generation of children with the military/industrial/evangelical/corporate culture in order to align America with the neocon vision from the inside out.
They want to control the curriculum to make sure that age-appropriate sex education is not taught in science class and that creationism is. They want to make sure that gay issues are taught as sinful, immoral and aberrational. They want Coke machines in the school hallways.
They use NCLB-mandated testing to fail public schools, close them down, take their money, and give them to private schools set up by out-of-state corporations (which ironically, but not accidentally, are NOT required by NCLB to test students).
They use the insidious device of vouchers, to take the money from already under-funded public school systems, to fund tuition for private and religious schools.
As with many Bush programs designed to destroy public institutions, the No Child Left Behind Act is a misnomer, is designed to leave behind the poor children. The level of voucher money that provided for in local proposals isn't enough to pay for any private school tuition. The economically disadvantaged will never be able to send their children to private school on voucher money alone. Only the middles and upper-middles will be able to benefit, many of who already have their children in these high-end schools.
In the last school board election, Colorado Springs District 11 was the national proving ground for a plan by wealthy Springs developer, Steve Schuck, a major player in the controversial national movement to install voucher systems in public schools.
Schuck's group backed four candidates with a total of $175,000 (yes, for local school board). Before anyone knew what happened, this "stealth" campaign succeeded in taking over the school board. One of their first actions was to close down the gay/straight alliance discussion group at Palmer High School.
Clearly the most extreme and destructive in the group is Eric Christen. Read about his antics here.
He and Schuck's group are very dangerous to public schools. There is something very wrong about private school advocates sitting as public school officeholders.
The character and moral fiber of our school board directors is perhaps more important to the Colorado Springs community than that of any other elected official, because they are fundamental caretakers of our children.
I have looked into Eric Christen's background and have turned up a criminal history that raises many questions pertaining to his service on the school board and on his support for candidates running in the November 1, 2005 election.
* From the the public records in Oregon which I obtained of one Eric Damien Christen, he is shown to have been convicted in February 1996 (Washington County, OR) of 2nd degree criminal mischief and sentenced to 9 years probation. (Note: I don't know yet the nature of the crime, and I am trying to secure court transcripts, but 9 years seems to me to be a long probation.)
* The records then show that Eric Christen was convicted in September of 2002 (Multnomah County, OR) of 3rd degree theft (court disposition: reduced to violation).
This second conviction occurs during the time in which the record indicates Eric Christen to still have been under probation for the 1996 conviction.
I am not able to find in the records any item indicating a violation probation, which raises the questions:
1) Did Eric Christen inform the Washington Cty courts that he had been charged with theft in Multnomah Cty?
2) Did Eric Christen inform the Multnomah Cty courts that he was under probation at the time he was convicted in the theft case?
3) Did Eric Christen have permission from Oregon authorities to leave the state and move to Colorado (which he appears to have done, one month after his conviction in the theft case)?
4) After his September 2002 sentencing in the theft case, Eric Christen came to Colorado Springs to declare residency for his candidacy for D11 school board. Did Steve Schuck and the others who funded Eric Christen's campaign know at that time that they were running a convicted criminal for school board? (We know he didn't inform the voters that he had these two convictions and was still in the criminal justice system ...tricked us on that one.)
5) Did Eric Christen disclose to the D11 school board and superintendent of schools that he was in fact on probation for the entire first year of his term serving on the board?
6) Eric Chirsten and Steve Shuck are backing three candidates for D11 for the November 1, 2005 election (Bob Latham, Carla Albers, Reginald Perry)
Has the vetting process to screen for criminal behavior improved since Schuck ran Eric Christen). How does this all reflect on their candidacies, as they are being funded and supported by people who have demonstrated their willingness to run a convicted criminal without disclosing, and that morality and honesty in a candidate are not as important as agenda?
After my remarks to the board, Eric Christen directed this threat to me:
"I hope you understand the meaning of slander because you are going to pay deeply ...Understand that the fable that you leveled tonight is going to come back to haunt you for the rest of your life."
Well, this is in fact his criminal record. I would welcome the opportunity to have him address these questions I've raised in any forum. Further, I hope that the special meeting of the school board on Monday will lead to a full investigation. Voters have a right to know. Parents have a right to know.
--Dave Therault
==================
Postscript:
As you can see I am not about to try to conceal my disdain for those who have as their goal, the dismantling of public education.
I salute the yellow school bus, just as I do the fire truck and the police cruiser.
Perhaps Schuck will consider funding advocacies for the privatization of other public services such as police and fire. George Bush could push out the No Fire House Left Standing Act, which would be used to mandate testing fire and police response:
"Let's see. Kinda looks like it took 3 minutes longer than it should have for you to respond on that last 911 call. We're going to have to pull funding for that new EMT truck. Oh, and we'll be closing down the Sand Creek police station. We're going to give the neighborhood a voucher which they're planning to use to hire a private militia."
But that will never happen, because police and fire services have no ideological culture which the neocons need to change to suit their corrupted view of America.
For more background, see:
* Cara DeGette's excellent analysis in the Colorado Springs Independent
* Excitable boy
Eric Christens path to public office
Indy's coverage of Eric Christen's conviction on road rage charges
==================
posted by Threshing Machine | 12:30 PM
6 Comments:
I can't decide if this makes me miss
Co. Springs more or less.
--Rob
Using the name Kristen lends less credence to your research.
--Wendy
Wendy, thank you for posting, and for correcting me. I have changed the instance where I had misspelled it.
--Dave Therault
I think it would be good of you to inform those interested in protecting D-11 and its kids that the Clerk and Recorder of El Paso County (you know, the one whom we will be relying on for tomorrow's election results and subsequent counting of absentee ballots and early voting and so on...) goes to church with the newly elected prosecutor (and another Religious Right's favored son) John Newsome.
And why we're thinking about it... who is supposed to prosecute Breazell, Shakes, Cox and Krissie, I mean Christen, for their ILLEGAL quorum meeting? I thought Christians (not to be confused with Krissies, which I am sure are somehow related to Krispie Cremes) are supposed to be law-respecting, law-abiding people? Isn't some self-respecting governmental official supposed to do this without being reminded?
See this post: http://threshingmachine.blogspot.com/2005/11/krdo-colorado-springs-shortage-of.html
for more on our clerk and recorder.
--Dave Therault
I do not know why they did not discover his criminal record sooner. It is easy to get a Oregon background check.
Whether you are searching about your school board director, babysitter or nanny, you will benefit from an Oregon background check. This is the best way to know about them before you leave your little ones to their care.
Once you know the counties of residence and travel begin an Oregon Background Check at the official state website for Oregon at http://www.oregon.gov/. Here you will find contact information to the state and local government agencies where you will find information for your Oregon background check.
You will want to include the Sex Offenders Registry in your Oregon Background Check located at http://sexoffenders.oregon.gov/.
Go to the Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision website located at http://www.oregon.gov/BOPPPS/ and make see if they are on parole through the state of Oregon.
The Oregon Department of Corrections is on the web at http://www.doc.state.ok.us and the Oregon State Police are at http://egov.oregon.gov/OSP/. Your Oregon Background Check should include checking them in the Oregon system to see if they have been in any trouble with the law.
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