Lawrence J. Norton is in jail now, an admitted pedophile, no longer a teacher. But parents are still searching for answers to questions generated by his case, notably: How many children at Mokapu Elementary School did he molest, and did education officials do enough to protect them? State laws that shield state workers' personnel records and limit disclosures about criminal defendants' pasts make answers hard to get.
"Morally, I am just so outraged. ... I know there are parents out there who have no clue" their children were at risk, said Carolyn Mellon, whose two sons attended Mokapu but did not know Norton. "It doesn't matter that it wasn't my kids. Everyone should be concerned about this and want to know what they're doing to keep it from happening again."
Former colleagues remember Norton as an authoritative yet affectionate teacher highly regarded by staff, students and parents. Prosecutors paint him as a predator who gained girls' trust, enticed them into his classroom, then fondled their breasts or buttocks under the guise of giving them hugs.
In the past five years, Norton has been charged with fondling five Mokapu students, all fair-haired girls between the ages of 8 and 11. A jury acquitted him in the first case, he pleaded no contest in the second, and the remaining third-degree sexual assault charges are pending.
The parents' questions stem from Norton's sentencing May 13 in the second case.
In giving him a year in jail and five years' probation, Circuit Judge Sandra Simms noted that Norton had a history of abuse, was aware of it when he became a teacher and had not sought treatment until after being indicted in 1995. She also said she could not sentence him for offenses he had not been convicted of, court transcripts show.
At a press conference three days later, City Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro called the sentence "a mockery of justice" and said Norton had admitted molesting more than two dozen children in his lifetime.
Norton's lawyer, Clifford Hunt, moved to dismiss the pending molestation charges - to which Norton is pleading not guilty - claiming Kaneshiro had purposely inflamed the public and ruined Norton's chance of a fair trial.
Hunt said Kaneshiro had committed prosecutory misconduct by revealing details of Norton's past contained in a sealed presentencing report.
The report, which defines the scope of Norton's deviant behavior, was used by law enforcement agencies to gauge his punishment. Hunt said defendants must be guaranteed privacy in such situations or they will not be candid about past abuses.
And the Department of Education, on advice from the state attorney general's office, refused to release Norton's personnel records or records of its disciplinary probes of him, citing state laws protecting the privacy of employees.
The current law shields all state employees equally, even after they have been fired or convicted of a crime, said Deputy Attorney General Eric Medeiros. The Star-Bulletin referred the request for records to the Office of Information Practices, which concurred with Medeiros.
"Since when do (Norton's) rights to privacy outweigh the compelling and inarguable need for treatment for these children? I find it cruelly ironic that this happens in a school whose parents literally lay down their lives (in the military) to protect our rights," the mother of one alleged victim told the Star-Bulletin.
And Mellon noted that the law protecting Norton's privacy also shields the entire Department of Education from scrutiny. Although DOE officials have defended their handling of the case, the records that could prove or disprove that are private.
The DOE did its own investigations - separate from the criminal ones - when students accused Norton in 1991 and 1995.
Donna Estomago was a Mokapu Elementary School vice principal serving as interim principal when an 8-year-old student claimed Norton fondled her breast in September 1991.
Estomago said the accusation was investigated thoroughly.
Norton denied abusing the girl; the child, who had no witnesses, was considered less credible and "you have to remember he was acquitted in court," Estomago said.
Although the department's burden of proof is lower than in criminal cases, "it is still quite high. The em
ployee has a right to due process, which the union is there to protect," said Donald Nugent, the DOE's personnel director.
Estomago, who worked at Mokapu from 1988 to 1994, said she was unaware of any other accusations against Norton. She left the school before the January 1995 case and was shocked by his admission last month of long-term sexual problems.
"In this particular case, who would guess? Here was a teacher who was esteemed by faculty and beloved by students and teachers."
It's just that attitude that makes Mellon question whether the DOE delved deeply enough into his background. "They all loved the guy," she said. "Who do you think they were inclined to believe? The esteemed teacher or the military kid who is going to be gone in a year anyway?"
Norton was granted tenure in January 1992 while he was under investigation in the first case.
Parents have criticized how current Mokapu administrators handled students' complaints. In the January 1995 case, the victim's mother complained that school officials failed to quickly notify police.
And the mother of one of the alleged victims in a pending buttocks-fondling case said Mokapu principal James Schlosser questioned her daughter at length before police did. Honolulu police prefer that experts be the first to interview the alleged victims.
Schlosser, Mokapu vice principal Amy Arakaki and Windward District Superintendent Ruby Hiraishi all refused to comment, citing the state privacy law.
Hiraishi said she understood parents' frustration at the lack of answers "and I have to tell you also that it is very frustrating for me many times not to say what we did because I truly believe that we have done whatever we need to do, but I cannot give you the details. I'm sorry."
Department of Education spokesman Greg Knudsen said the department does not have a written policy on how administrators should respond when a child accuses a school employee of abuse.
Board of Education Chairman Mitsugi Nakashima said the department should write one, and train administrators better to spot trouble.
"We have written policies for just about everything else - why not this?" Nakashima said. "The question is: At the front line of investigation, do these people know what to look for?"
