Noose At Crofton School Leads To Hate Crime Charges

CROFTON, MD — Prosecutors have filed hate crime charges against men from Crofton and Pasadena for allegedly climbing up on the roof of Crofton Middle School to hang a noose, a symbol of racial strife and violence. Anne Arundel County Police on May 12 arrested Conner Charles Prout, 19, of Crofton, and John Adam Havermann, 19, of Pasadena for allegedly hanging the racially-tinged object.

Both suspects were originally charged with trespass on posted property, trespass on school property, disturbing school operations and disorderly conduct - disturbing the peace. Anne Arundel County State's Attorney Wes Adams said Wednesday that after evaluating the evidence his office has added counts of race/religious belief - harass/commit a crime upon and con-race/religious belief - harass/commit a crime upon to the case against the two men.

Nooses have been reported as symbols of racial unrest in recent weeks at both the University of Maryland and American University. No arrests have been made in either of those cases.

The school principal told parents in a letter May 11 that the action sent a "disturbing" and "intolerant" message to the community.

“I am very proud of the hard work our detectives put in to solving this case. I am hopeful that this swift arrest offers at least some degree of closure for the students, faculty and staff at the Crofton Middle School," Police Chief Timothy Altomare said in a statement. "There is no place in our community for the sentiment communicated by such an act, and we will always give 100 percent effort to bring to justice anyone who commits a crime espousing hateful ideology.”

A teacher spotted the noose hanging from a light fixture on the exterior of the building about 11 a.m. May 11 at the school, 2301 Davidsonville Road in Crofton. A school custodian immediately took the object down and police were called.

Principal Nuria Miller said in a letter to parents that the "incident is clearly disturbing on many levels. While it appears to have no connection to our instructional day or any instructional unit our students are currently studying, we cannot ignore the intolerant message this act conveys."

She vowed that the incident will not change the "inclusive and supportive school community."

Police spokesman Lt. Ryan Frashure previously told Patch that no note was left with the noose and police are still trying to determine the exact motive of the suspects. But police "obviously know the powerful visual meaning that is associated with a noose," Frashure said.

Detectives watched video surveillance from the school and say the two suspects gained access to the building's roof and placed the noose on the light fixture.

The full text of Principal Miller's letter to parents:

May 11, 2017

Dear Parents and Guardians:

I am writing to let you know about a most disturbing incident that occurred at our school today. Shortly before 11 a.m., a teacher reported to our administration that there was a noose hanging in front of a window that looks out on our courtyard.

The noose was hung from an exterior light and was in front of a window of a teacher planning room. It was also visible to students who could look into the courtyard from other classrooms.

We immediately called county police, and asked a custodian to remove the noose. That was done within minutes of our becoming aware of it.

We, along with police, are continuing to investigate this incident in an effort to determine how the noose came to be placed on the light. While I cannot discuss specifics of this active investigation, we believe at this point that the noose was placed on the light last night by someone who gained access to the roof of our building. We do not believe this event happened during our school day.

This incident is clearly disturbing on many levels. While it appears to have no connection to our instructional day or any instructional unit our students are currently studying, we cannot ignore the intolerant message this act conveys.

I addressed our students before school dismissed today and reassured them that they are safe and supported in our school. I also want to assure you that we have resources available for any student or adult who has a need to discuss their feelings about this matter. I also am more than willing to address it – to the extent that I am able – at our Coffee with the Principal event scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday at the school.

If you have any information that could help in our investigation, please call our school or county police.

We pride ourselves on being an inclusive and supportive school community. We will not let this incident change that, and we will continue to work with county police to try and ascertain who the culprits are.

Sincerely,

Nuria Williams

Principal

NW/bm

»Photos of Crofton school noose suspects Conner Prout and John Havermann, courtesy of Anne Arundel County Police.