A middle school teacher was arrested in Keller on Monday for an alleged inappropriate sexual relationship with a former student over the summer.
Angela Dawn Barnes, 45, a teacher at Carroll Middle School in Southlake, was charged with sexual assault of a child and an improper relationship between an educator and student.
Keller police received information in September concerning the alleged improper relationship and began investigating immediately, according to the department’s press release. Investigators found that Barnes had engaged in a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old male former student between June and July of this year. Police did not say where the boy was currently attending school.
Police said that at this time, there is no evidence that there are other victims. They ask anyone with information pertaining to the case to contact Detective Brockmoller at [email protected]
Carroll ISD released a statement following Barnes’ arrest.
“Carroll ISD immediately placed this staff member on administrative leave and reported to the proper authorities. The District was made aware the alleged offense took place off-campus over the summer within the jurisdiction of the Keller Police Department. Based on the information we have received, no incidents occurred on CISD campuses. CISD is working in collaboration with Keller Police and Child Protective Services as they investigate the allegations.
“The safety and security of all students is always our top priority and any allegations of adult misconduct are addressed promptly and reported immediately to the proper authorities,” the press release stated.
In the nearby city of Dallas, 533 sex offenses have been reported so far this year. Nearly half — 46.7% — of the victims of these crimes were children under the age of 18, according to the City of Dallas Crime Analytics dashboard.
The Dallas Police Department has been hindered in its efforts to manage crime in the city because of a chronic shortage of police officers and budget restraints. DPD currently has about 3,000 sworn officers, which falls short of the City’s 2015 recommendation of 4,000 officers. This shortage of police officers contributes to longer response times for emergency calls, as previously reported by DX.
Although the DPD’s budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year rose nearly 10% over the previous year to $719 million, it still falls far short of the budget of other high-crime jurisdictions such as Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City.
