Jason Buyaki, Rivanna District representative to the Albemarle County School Board, and Eric Strucko, Samuel Miller District representative, independently have called for the resignation of embattled Albemarle County Supervisor, Chris Dumler.

Among an otherwise stone-silent school board, both members cite concern over Dumler’s sexual battery conviction, the message projected by his continued presence on the Board of Supervisors, and Dumler’s ability to freely roam Albemarle County schools without escort.

Buyaki suggests changing school board policy on sex offenders so that: “any individual who has been convicted of sex crime should be escorted at all times as a precaution and preventative method.” Strucko says he’s “open” to considering such a revision.

As of publication time, Albemarle County School Board members, Diantha McKeel (vice chair), Ned Galloway, Steve Koleszar (chair), Pam Moynihan, and Barbara Mouley, had not responded to The Schilling Show’s request for comment.

Read below for questions asked of the Albemarle County School Board, and for responses received from Strucko and Buyaki:

Schilling Show inquiry:

From: Rob Schilling
Date: February 20, 2013 10:09:19 AM EST
To: School Board <schoolboard@k12albemarle.org>
Subject: Media Inquiry: Request for Comment on Supervisor Dumler

Dear Albemarle County School Board Member,

In light of Albemarle County Supervisor Chris Dumler’s conviction on sexual battery charges, I’d like your individual comment on the current situation.

  1. Current Albemarle County School Board policy does not bar Mr. Dumler from visiting Albemarle County school property while students are present. Do you have any concerns regarding Mr. Dumler being on Albemarle County school property while children are present?
  2. In light of the Dumler situation (an elected convicted sexual batterer who can roam our schools), do you believe Albemarle County School Board policy needs amending? If so, how?
  3. Will you personally call for Mr. Dumler to resign from his position? Why or why not?

Thank you in advance for your prompt attention to these queries.

 

Jason Buyaki response:

From: Jason Buyaki
Date: February 20, 2013 10:34:32 PM EST
To: Rob Schilling
Subject: RE: Media Inquiry: Request for Comment on Supervisor Dumler

  1. Yes, I do have concerns.  Sadly, sexual offenses seem to have an upward trend in our society.  While Mr. Dumler’s actions were not against children, we must take necessary precautions to safeguard our children.  Mr. Dumler was a community leader whom citizens and students could look to as an exemplar, however, he pled guilty and was convicted of a grievous crime of hurting a woman or women.  Clearly, this in not ethical or moral behavior by the standards our our society.  I believe that our nation succeeds only when we have leaders of solid ethical and moral standards, who strive to live up to that code daily.  Sometimes our leaders fail such as the case with Mr. Dumler.If Mr. Dumler is on school grounds, what message does it send to our students? That to harm women is acceptable and that there are no short and long term consquences for those that would perpetrate such harmful, unethical, and immoral acts?  Some, but not all students would most certainly perceive it that way.  The overarching message would be one of tolerance for such behavior, which I do not condone (the behavior or the tolerance of such behavior).  Mr. Dumler will always carry that baggage every time he steps onto school property.As a side note and one that parallels our current conversation, February is Teen Dating Violence Month. We should aim to teach students, at home preferably but domestic abuse defeats that kind of message, that one whom harms another in a relationship will certainly do it again without quality intervention.  In truth, the best result is for the harmed one to exit the relationship and report the incident.
  2. It is the policy of the Albemarle Schools that all visitors report to the office of the school they are visiting, state the reason, collect a visitor badge, and carry on with their business, most times unescorted by school personnel.  Our policy KNA: Sex Offenders on School Property would not apply to Mr. Dumler’s crime because he was not convicted of a violent sexual offense according to Virginia law.  Our policies have procedures and precautions for allowing individuals who are registered sex offenders onto school grounds under careful supervision.I have come to the logical conclusion that any individual who has been convicted of sex crime should be escorted at all times as a precaution and preventative method.  Policy KNA does not have any provisions for such, and therefore a change should be enacted.
  3. If Mr. Dumler was an employee of the School Division, he would most likely be terminated from his employment with Albemarle County Public Schools. As I wrote previously, we must have moral and ethical leaders and the public must hold their leaders accountable.  While nothing in Virginia code requires Mr. Dumler to resign, it is the responsible and reasonable course of action and I am astonished that incident has gone this far.  I call for Mr. Dumler to resign and let the healing process begin and ask that the Board of Supervisors hold a special election at the nearest opportune time to allow the residents of the Scottsville Magisterial District to elect a new representative.

 

Eric Strucko response:

From: “Strucko, Eric J *HS”
Date: February 21, 2013 08:06:50 AM EST
To: ‘Rob Schilling’
Subject: RE: Media Inquiry: Request for Comment on Supervisor Dumler

I received a few emails outlining the parameters of Virginia law with respect to sexually violent offenses and our school policy regarding access to buildings/grounds.  Chris Dumler’s case apparently does not rise to the legal standard of an offense triggering banning from school property according to the policy.  That said, one of my board colleagues wants to explore the matter further and examine if we would considering requiring an escort for Chris Dumler when on school property.  I am open to having that discussion.  Chris Dumler’s admission of guilt, subsequent conviction, and the nature of his offense are serious matters to me.

Regarding my view as to whether or not Chris should step down…my personal feeling is yes…given the seriousness and nature of the offense and his admission of guilt, I think the proper course of action for him is to resign his seat.  I realize that Virginia law does not mandate his removal from office, but such a criminal conviction does not reconcile with what I think is the standard of behavior for someone holding elected office.

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16 COMMENTS

  1. Breaking news: Albemarle County School Board members Jason Buyaki and Eric Strucko call for Supervisor Chris Dumler's resignation.

  2. Bravo Gentlemen! Thank you for standing up for what most of us believe is right. May you be an inspiration to others that are on the fence about this serious subject.

  3. This is wonderful news. Why haven’t the other School Board members weighed in? In what universe would anybody want a CONVICTED SEXUAL BATTERER around their kids?

  4. Mr. Strucko said it best: ” I realize that Virginia law does not mandate his removal from office, but such a criminal conviction does not reconcile with what I think is the standard of behavior for someone holding elected office.”
    All elected office holders in Albemarle County, and our Democratic Party should just say this. It’s simple and to-the-point. Thank you Eric, and Jason, for your gentle way of addressing a serious and unfortunate situation.

  5. Mr. Strucko said it best: ” I realize that Virginia law does not mandate his removal from office, but such a criminal conviction does not reconcile with what I think is the standard of behavior for someone holding elected office.”

    I agree. That’s exactly the point. Dumler’s behavior was dishonorable, he doesn’t deserve public office, and we the citizens deserve someone honorable.

    In what universe would anybody want a CONVICTED SEXUAL BATTERER around their kids?

    That’s a misleading question. The question is whether someone who’s committed a sexual offense in private has a statistically significant greater risk of committing one in public. What chance does Dumler really have of assaulting a kid at school?

  6. Well Ken, maybe you have no problem with a convicted sexual batterer being around your kids on school grounds but I sure do and bet most all other parents feel same way. Nope, my question is spot on. I wouldn’t want Dumler within a mile of my teenaged daughter. Haven’t you ever heard how sexual predators ‘groom’ their victims first? Sandusky scandal is one example. No convicted sexual batterer should ever be trusted around kids!

  7. I understand your feelings, Albemarle Co. Parent, but good law isn’t based on feelings. No good parent would want dishonorable people around their kids anywhere, but that doesn’t mean they have the right to keep them away anywhere. If men who commit date rape are also known to prey on underage kids at a greater rate than average, that’s a cause for laws banning them from school campuses. Otherwise, what’s the cause, the fact that we don’t like them?

    Jerry Sandusky ran programs for kids that gave him lots of time alone with individual kids. When would visits to school grounds on County Supervisor business necessarily give Dumler any time alone with a kid? The two situations are hardly the same. Neither are all sex criminals a danger to the same people.

  8. Ken, There are plenty of ways an offender could get into the area schools. A youthful apoearing person could easily and unnoticed, walk into area high schools during a crowded period of the day. Then again there is the parking lot. Adult-sized minors exit the high schools everyday while headed for the parking lot or the trails for an unsupervised walk home. Once someone is inside the school, there are many holes in the wall including bathrooms. Don’t be so sure the kids remain entirely protected.

  9. A convicted sexual batterer does not belong on school grounds in any situation. Sexual offenders and their ilk would probably disagree with that statement.

  10. Let’s not forget that it is newsworthy that Eric Strucko, a Democrat who has run as an independent this last time (he ran for Supervisor himself as a Democrat and is or was a member of the Albemarle County Democratic Committee), is the first Democrat office-holder to ask for Dumler’s resignation. Our Democratic party in the county would do well to ask for his resignation, but short of that, they can kick him out of the party and let him serve whatever time he has left as an Independent. At least that way, they can wash their hands of Dumler while he still caucuses or votes with the Democrats. Valerie & Cynthia, please do the right thing for the women of our county. At least denounce his behavior, ask him to resign, and kick him out of the party!

  11. A convicted sexual batterer does not belong on school grounds in any situation. Sexual offenders and their ilk would probably disagree with that statement.

    LOL. When some people can’t defend their opinions, they just repeat them and add insults, like little kids.

    Wolf, banning someone from the schools won’t prevent him from sneaking in or hanging around the parking lots. As for what might happen in a bathroom, a) no one’s prevented evidence that date rapists are inclined to assault underage kids in public places, and b) any person, much less one who’s trying to stay in public office, would have to be completely crazy to attempt rape in a public place. When’s the last time anyone heard of an adult committed rape in a school?

    Dumler should be forced from office, but no one here has presented any evidence that he’s a danger to kids in school.

  12. well, so far none of pressure that is currently being applied seem to have done nothing. Except made allot of people pissed. Ken, yes there has been rape committed in schools. There was a case here in VA where an adult male chased a young male into bathroom. End result the adult will be serving time behind the fence. The data currently available show that Ken point a is right. Something I learned a very long time ago, predator operate on a differnet set of values, a differnet point of view on how they fit into society. I have seen once in a great while, they do change, something inside of them. But 99.99999999% of time they just stay the same. Some become more aggressive and other just fade away. Just maybe the right person with the right pressure will get him to step down. Until than he is stand on the hill overlooking his community and giving them the finger.

  13. Area, I’m not sure I follow you. Are you saying that while in your experience, predators rarely change, there is no hard evidence that date rapists go on to commit other kinds of sexual assaults? Or are you saying you don’t need a study to think that Dumler’s a risk in schools?

    I know it’s been said that rapists often act out of hostility to women, not out of sexual desire. I would guess the reverse would be true of date rapists, that they’re attracted to their victims and just take what they want when to their disappointment it’s not offered. If that’s the case, a date rapist would likely not be a threat to the general community. Then again, sodomy could be used as a tool to humiliate.

    In any case, from date rape to public assault is a huge leap. It’s one thing to do something in private you might get away with. It’s quite another to completely lose control and do something you’re certain to be punished for.

  14. Sorry for the mixed message:
    1. predators rarely change.
    2. correct date rapists depending on age do pickup their next victim from school, shopping malls, churches etc.
    3. rape is power over the victim, women or men
    4. sodomy is used as a tool to humiliate either women or men depending on the situlation.
    5. date rape to public assault is not a huge leap, if you deal with the indiivduals I deal with.Remember there is more than one type of public sexual assault from verbal to touching etc per the law.
    Either way for now Dumler is going to stay where he is at. He is not stupid, he used the law in his favor.

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