North Andover Schools Rescind Controversial Safety Plans

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — North Andover Superintendent Glenn Gilligan said Thursday the school system is no longer using the controversial "safety plans" that came to light after a student was arrested and accused of raping a New Hampshire girl twice in one day last month. Gilligan's announcement that he had told North Andover High School Principal Chet Jackson to rescind all safety plans currently in use at Thursday night's school committee meeting was met with applause from some of the students and parents who had gathered to address the board.

At least three students in the school accused Eliezer Tuttle, 18, of sexual assault before he was arrested earlier this month. Following the accusations by the three North Andover girls, Tuttle was allowed to return to school. Administrators asked victims sign "safety plans" that limited their movements around the school to limit contact with Tuttle. The plans called for disciplinary action if the victims had contact with Tuttle.

"At times like these I believe it’s our responsibility to reevaluate district policies and practices when concerns are raised," Gilligan said in prepared remarks.

The North Andover School Committee said ahead of Thursday's meeting it would not discuss the safety plans or the accusations against Tuttle, but would listen to speakers during the public comment section of its meeting.

If Tuttle "was never arrested, this would never be brought to light," Julie Tschirhart, a senior at North Andover High School, told the committee. She asked that the committee schedule another meeting to discuss the issue, as well as a petition that has been circulated demanding policy changes.

In a note to parents last week, Gilligan said the district had hired an outside law firm to review its current policies. That review should be completed within two weeks, Gilligan said Thursday.

Ava Giboard, a senior at the high school, signed a safety plan after she was physically assaulted in a classroom during her junior year. "Survivors of sexual assault should not be the ones displaced," she said. "I could not imagine being a victim of sexual assault and signing that."

School officials were first notified that Tuttle had been accused of a sexual assault when a then 15-year-old student at the school went to police and told them Tuttle had raped her in October 2017. Tuttle was never prosecuted in the 2017 case because prosecutors thought the victim was "too fragile to testify."

Then in March of last year, another student was attacked by Tuttle in his car. The victim, according to an affidavit, fought Tuttle off when he forcibly tried to take her clothes off and climbed on top of her. A third victim has also come forward and has said she had to enroll in night school to graduate after meeting the requirements of the plan became too burdensome.

The March 2018 case was continued without a finding until Tuttle's 19th birthday. Such rulings are often given to first-time offenders. While Tuttle effectively admitted that a jury would find him guilty if the case went to trial, the continuation without a finding meant the incident would have been erased from his record had he stayed out of trouble.

School officials asked the victim in that case refused to sign a safety action plan when Tuttle was allowed to return to school. She said she refused when she learned she would face disciplinary action if she violated the stipulations laid out in the plan.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).