Officials, parents frustrated with Park Tudor's handling of Kyle Cox probe

If everything had gone according to Kyle Cox’s plan, the former basketball coach would have been hired at another school after resigning his position at Park Tudor.

Cox, who was accused of sexual misconduct involving a 15-year-old student, signed a confidentiality agreement Dec. 15 that obligated school officials to tell prospective employers he had resigned.

“The nice thing is I can get any job in the state,” Cox later texted a male student. “I’ve positioned myself to be marketable.”

Such confidentiality agreements are common in workplace disputes. They are used by employers to avoid bad publicity, “manage risk” and head off potential lawsuits over wrongful termination. They can save companies money and time.

But there’s one important difference. Cox left Park Tudor because he was accused of a crime involving an underage girl.

“Because of the confidentiality agreement,” federal prosecutors said in court documents, “defendant had no further reason to worry about his ability to gain employment at another institution.”

That kind of practice creates a cloak of confidentiality that child advocates, state officials and prosecutors say could put other children at risk.

School officials did report the suspected abuse to the Indiana Department of Child Services. But officials interviewed by IndyStar questioned whether Park Tudor properly fulfilled that obligation.

Park Tudor spokeswoman Cathy Chapelle said she could not comment on the Cox case because it is a criminal matter.

Did Park Tudor officials violate state law?

This is not the first time officials have questioned the use of confidentiality agreements in Indiana.

Other Indiana school districts have used such agreements in cases when teachers were dismissed amid allegations of misconduct with a minor. One school district alone offered the agreements to four teachers.

Now, some say it is time for that secrecy to end.

“Confidentiality agreements between schools and adult educators when the school knows the adult harmed a child in some way should not be allowed,” said Shelley Haymaker, an attorney and director of a Hamilton County program that represents children in the child welfare system. “This does not protect a child. ... This protects an adult who should know better and a school who should be livid that a child in their custody and care was harmed by an adult that the school put their trust in. How is this not obstruction of justice?"

‘Very, very disappointing’

Cox, who was taken into federal custody Feb. 4, is accused of repeatedly coercing a 15-year-old girl into sending him explicit images.

IndyStar could not reach his attorney, Jim Voyles, for comment.

The girl’s father discovered the messages. He met with then-head of school Matthew D. Miller and attorney Michael Blickman on Dec. 14 and showed them screen shots of explicit messages between Cox and his daughter, which included a graphic picture of the girl, according to federal court records.

The next day, Park Tudor officials signed the confidentiality agreement and accepted Cox’s resignation. They allowed him to take home a school-issued computer to remove “personal” content. It's unclear whether that content could have helped police with their investigation.

That same day, Shants Hart, the associate head of school for external affairs, told DCS that Cox had sent messages to a 15-year-old student that were “suggestive and not appropriate for an adult teacher to send to a student.” When asked by DCS whether pictures had been exchanged, Hart, who was not in the meeting with the girl's father, said she did not know.

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DCS Director Mary Beth Bonaventura told IndyStar the school’s report did not indicate the need for intervention by DCS or the court system because the agency wasn’t aware of the explicit pictures. After all, the girl's safety was being ensured by her parents. And the school said it had fired Cox.

Bonaventura said Park Tudor should have provided all of the information it had, including the existence of explicit images and videos. And she said school officials should have “immediately” reported the suspected abuse, as required by law, rather than waiting until the next day.

“As a human being and a person who’s worked in this field for a long time, it’s so disappointing that this has happened,” Bonaventura said. “You want to be able to send your child to a place where you can rest assured they are safe. And that, if they aren’t safe, the school would still be the protector of the child. That’s their job. That didn’t happen here. That’s very, very disappointing.”

The result was a delay of at least a week before law enforcement officials were notified.

‘Criminal action has taken place’

During that time, parents and others were wondering about Cox’s abrupt departure.

Federal court records indicate Cox continued to communicate with at least one male student after his resignation — in apparent violation of his confidentiality agreement. In a series of text messages over several days, Cox told the male student to ask the 15-year-old girl “if it’s making her feel better to slander me.”

“I would turn my head if you messed her up,” Cox told the male student.

Park Tudor closed for winter break Dec. 21.

The next day, DCS received a report from a counselor not employed by the school. The counselor said Cox and the girl had exchanged videos and images that were “sexually explicit in nature.”

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DCS launched its investigation that day. And the next day — eight days after Cox resigned — a DCS family case manager looped in Sgt. Larry Cahill, who works in the sex crimes unit of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

Word about the allegations against Cox apparently had spread through the school. But no official police investigation was underway. As the New Year approached, IndyStar has learned, Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry received an anonymous letter signed “Concerned Park Tudor School Parents.”

The letter, dated Dec. 28 and obtained through a formal records request from IndyStar, expressed frustration with the school’s handling of the situation. The letter indicated school administrators and board members had told some parents and friends that Cox had “sexted aroused pictures of himself” to a student and had asked that student to send him naked pictures.

“Rather than investigate the matter fully and share it with law enforcement, the school allowed Mr. Cox to resign and then buried the issue,” the letter said. “Mr. Cox should not be allowed to be around young people in any official role. In the eyes of many parents at Park Tudor, he is a sex offender and should be registered and followed as one. Criminal action has taken place, and we urge you to fully investigate this matter.

“Your actions can prevent another young person from being harmed,” the letter said.

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Curry’s office received the letter Dec. 30 and contacted IMPD, which launched its official investigation. That same day, DCS received a third report about the allegations against Cox.

‘Privileged communications’

Five days later, on Jan. 4, DCS family case manager Mike Abell spoke with the girl’s father for the first time.

The next day, IMPD Detective Laura Smith visited Park Tudor to speak with Hart, the administrator who made the initial report to DCS. Hart told police she had received her information from Blickman, according to federal court records. She gave Smith the attorney’s phone number.

Blickman told police he would not offer any information because his conversations with school officials were “privileged communications,” court records state. Blickman said he thought Park Tudor officials had done everything that they needed to do.

But Capt. Richard Riddle, an IMPD spokesman, saw it differently, saying: “Park Tudor officials were uncooperative with the investigation.”

Around that time, about three weeks after the girl's father showed school officials the text messages from Cox, his daughter and another girl were assaulted at Park Tudor by the male student who had exchanged messages with Cox, federal prosecutors said.

The boy allegedly grabbed the 15-year-old’s neck and threw her to the ground, according to federal court records.

“It was fun knocking her (butt) to the ground,” the boy told Cox via text.

“It would have been pretty epic if you would have caused a concussion lol,” Cox replied.

Police said the assault was not reported to them. Two days later, detectives obtained and served search warrants at Park Tudor and Cox’s home. It was only then that Blickman told police he had received a laptop with the explicit pictures and documents from the girl’s father about three weeks earlier, court records state.

Detectives continued their investigation over the next few weeks. But it would not be until Jan. 21 — 37 days after the initial report — that detectives interviewed Miller, the head of school.

Through all of that, Park Tudor teachers and students were trying to continue the educational process.

On Jan. 23, the Park Tudor community was dealt another blow. Miller died. His death was ruled a suicide, according to the Marion County coroner's office.

On Feb. 4, seven weeks after his resignation, Cox was taken into federal custody on a charge of coercion and enticement, court records show.

Ex-Park Tudor coach Kyle Cox accused of sending sexually explicit messages to student

‘It’s a weird feeling’

Some Park Tudor parents say they are frustrated the situation involving Cox has tainted the reputation of the  school and the good people in it. Other parents say they feel "betrayed" by school officials who are supposed to keep children safe.

Multiple parents told IndyStar they felt they were being lied to by school officials during parent meetings Jan. 28, the day before Miller’s funeral.

Parents interviewed by IndyStar said much of what Blickman told them was later contradicted by details in the federal complaint against Cox, including a statement that Cox wasn’t allowed to remove property from Park Tudor.

"The representations (Blickman) made at that meeting were not true," said Scott Preston, an employment law attorney whose son attends Park Tudor.

“We appreciate the school reaching out to us," Preston said, "but don't reach out to us and not tell the full story."

Another father, who asked not to be named because he was concerned for his daughter's safety, said he has mixed emotions.

"It's a weird feeling because on the one hand you feel incredibly betrayed by the administration of the school," the man said. "But you also feel incredibly sorry for the teachers who have bent over backward to help the kids."

Blickman's law firm, Ice Miller, and his attorney, Jackie Bennett, urged the public to wait for the legal process to run its course before drawing a conclusion about the attorney.

"We stand by the integrity and character of Michael Blickman, an attorney who has devoted his life to family, community and excellence in the practice of law," a statement sent to IndyStar by an Ice Miller spokeswoman said.

Bennett said he could not answer specific questions due to Blickman's ethical obligation to Park Tudor as a client.

"There are still many facts that are needed in order to have a true understanding of what occurred," Bennett wrote in an email to IndyStar. "Once all of the facts are out, we are confident it will be shown that Michael Blickman met all of his professional responsibilities and served his client well."

Over the past week, Park Tudor officials have sent multiple emails to parents informing them of the situation. And the school organized an assembly with an expert discussing child sexual abuse and the fact that it never is the child’s fault.

On Friday, the Park Tudor board of directors said it hired a law firm to independently investigate the situation. It also said the law firm hired someone to monitor the school's compliance with its child protection policies.

"The school's reputation may be taking a short-term hit, but the truth is that this could have happened anywhere," a third Park Tudor father told IndyStar. "There are good people at the school, and I think they are learning from this experience."

To Haymaker, the Hamilton County child advocate, the use of confidentiality agreements can only make a bad situation worse. She said she would be more afraid and disappointed in a school for using such an agreement than she would if the school had exposed the perpetrator at the outset.

"In our schools, children should be the top priority," she said. "Not only in educating them, but in keeping them safe. Safe from each other and safe from any adults who try to harm them."

IndyStar reporter Tim Evans contributed to this story.

Call IndyStar reporter Marisa Kwiatkowski at (317) 444-6135. Follow her on Twitter: @IndyMarisaK.

Call IndyStar reporter Vic Ryckaert at (317) 444-2701. Follow him on Twitter: @vicryc.