Witnesses say previous school ‘cruelty’ occurred
By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – The headmaster of a private Slidell Christian school has been charged with a fourth Cruelty to Juvenile charge for disciplining students at his school, something John Raymond is now calling a “witch hunt” against the Christian values being upheld at the school.
Slidell Police previously reported Raymond was arrested on three Cruelty to Juvenile charges on April 7, connected to taping the mouths shut of three students who reportedly had created previous disruptions in class. After that news, members of Concerned Citizens of St. Tammany targeted Raymond by using social media to ask for others to come forward if they knew of other criminal or ethical issues against Raymond.
Slidell Police stated they were later contacted by former teachers, faculty and parents from Lakeside Christian Academy who came forward to report what they considered additional incidents of juvenile cruelty, some dating back as far as 2017. Police would not comment further on how many individuals that included, nor why the complaints were never previously filed.
Interviews with those individuals, who Raymond now calls “disgruntled former employees whom I had terminated from the school” led to Slidell Police deciding to press charges for a fourth Cruelty to Juvenile charge, this time second degree, which indicates more serious harm.
According to Slidell Police Spokesman Det. Daniel Seuzeneau, the latest charge involves incidents the witnesses said involved a four-year-old boy who reportedly “would sit on the ground and kick and scream. Due to the boy crying and screaming, Raymond allegedly placed his hand over the nose and mouth (preventing him from breathing) to the point of him going ‘limp.’ A staff member told Raymond to stop, and then observed the boy ‘out of it and lethargic,’ ‘unable to stand,’ and saw ‘mucous’ come out of the boy’s nose, as he attempted to breath.”
In another incident the police reported, the witnesses claimed the same boy was allegedly “dragged by his ankles” across a floor after he refused to leave with Raymond. In another incident, Raymond allegedly held the boy upside down by his ankles and repeatedly “whipped him on the buttocks.”
Raymond calls the latest charges “ridiculous” and stated that second degree cruelty to juveniles is described as causing “serious bodily harm,” something he vehemently denied.
“If any student had been seriously harmed, every staff member at the school would have called EMS and the police. Now six years later, they remember a crime?” he said in a statement to The Slidell Independent.
Raymond believes the charges stem from his strong Christian stands in recent years, first in an election against Rep. Mary DuBuisson, when he publicly questioned her claim on key Christian values, particularly her claim as being pro-life. That was followed by his position as one of the leaders in the very public fight against a proposed casino in Slidell, which local groups defeated in December.
“This has now manifested into a witch hunt, where the powers that be must find the Christian headmaster guilty of something, so they fabricate ‘crimes’ when they well know that a teacher/headmaster has the right to reasonably discipline children under our law. The people that know me know that I would never hurt a student,” he said.
Raymond pointed to Scriptures which guide his school and church and added that “our faith teaches us that we have a duty to discipline our children, not coddle them. Proverbs 23: 13-14 says, ‘Don’t fail to discipline your children. The rod of punishment won’t kill them. Physical discipline may well save them from death.”
On the advice of his attorney Raymond said he could not specifically discuss the allegations. But he did press on with his comments about the situation in America that he called the “Woke” culture that seeks to cancel anyone they disagree with.
“Liberals in America and their media allies want to make any sort of corporal punishment or discipline of a child a crime. They confuse discipline with abuse. Look at our streets. Look at our prisons. They are full of young men who did not have discipline at home, no one to show them the right path and they took the easy road, which led to crime, drugs and despair.
“We as Christians will not allow our children to run wild at school. We will not allow them to disrespect their teacher,” he added.
“Both the secular laws of Louisiana and most importantly, Biblical teachings encourage reasonable discipline for our children by the headmaster of a Christian school,” he concluded.
Slidell Police said they took the information from their investigation to a 22nd Judicial District judge, which included an interview with Raymond before charges were filed and were granted an arrest warrant. Raymond was arrested and held in jail for approximately 24 hours before being able to bond out.
He said he looks forward to his day in court when he believes the truth will come out.
“I look forward to my day in court with a jury made up of citizens of this parish. I did nothing wrong and would never harm a child, and I will prove that at trial. I put my faith in God and the common sense people of this parish. Discipline is not a crime. It is needed in the raising of our youth,” he said.
Slidell Police said the investigation is not closed as detectives are interviewing additional witnesses linked to other allegations against Raymond.