Blake Neff of the Daily Caller documents disturbing developments from the troubled Detroit school system.
A public school teacher in Detroit is upset the federal government is daring to prosecute public school principals who allegedly took close to a million dollars in bribes, arguing it was only a “little bit unethical” and was really no big deal.
Cathy Brackett is a teacher at Bennett Elementary School in Detroit, whose principal, Josette Buendia, is among 12 current and former Detroit Public Schools (DPS) principals accused of taking part in a $900,000 kickback scheme. Buendia herself is accused of taking $45,775 in kickbacks from businessman Norman Shy in return for ordering school supplies from his company, Allstate Sales.
According to Buendia’s indictment, these school supplies were often never delivered or only partly delivered in order to make the order appear legitimate. The indictment says Buendia’s conspiracy with Shy lasted for over three and a half years, with Buendia frequently meeting with Shy to discuss how much he owed her and to discuss how she could disguise the payments as gift cards intended for school purchases.
Despite the formidable allegations against Buendia, Brackett told The Detroit Free Press the government shouldn’t be prosecuting bribe-taking principals. …
… Instead of corrupt principals, Brackett argued the federal government should be investigating the emergency managers who have been running DPS since a state takeover in 2009.
“They should be going after the big thieves who have come into the district under the guise of emergency managers and consultants who have skimmed not just thousands of dollars but millions of dollars away from our students and just move on to their next gig, seemingly without repercussions,” she said.
