SCHOOL PRINCIPAL’S CAREER DESTROYED BY FALSE ACCUSATIONS OF SEEXUAL MISCONDUCT

Catherine Armstrong Bell, assistant principal at Pelham High School in Shelby County, Alabama, lost her job and her home after being falsely accused of engaging in sexual intercourse with a student under 19

34-year-old Catherine Armstrong Bell, the assistant principal at Pelham High School in Shelby County, Alabama, became the victim of what started out to be a rumor and turned into false accusations that she had engaged in sexual intercourse with a student under the age of 19. She was arrested, lost her job and home, and couldn’t find another job because of the accusations against her. Electronic and DNA evidence together with a recantation by the alleged victim cleared her of all charges one year after she was arrested. By then though her career had been completely destroyed.

PRINCIPAL SOBS AS SHE REVEALS HOW PUPIL’S FALSE AFFAIR CLAIMS ENDED HER CAREER AND TURNED ‘EVERYONE AGAINST HER’ BEFORE JUDGE LAUGHED THE ALLEGATIONS OUT OF COURT
Catherine Armstrong Bell, 34, was fired after she was arrested in December 2013 and charged with 4 counts of sexual intercourse with a student under 19; on Monday the student recanted the allegations

By Mia De Graaf and Wills Robinson

Mail Online
December 13, 2014

An assistant principal falsely accused of having sex with a teenage student was forced to sell her home and has revealed everyone 'turned their back' on her in the wake of the allegations.

Catherine Armstrong Bell, 34, was arrested in December 2013 and charged with four counts of abuse during her tenure at Pelham High School in Shelby County, Alabama.

But on Monday, exactly a year later, a judge dismissed the case and ruled that Bell can never face charges over the same incident in the future.

In a teary interview with ABC 33/40, she described how she had dedicated her whole life to teaching, but woke up one day to find it had all been taken away.

She said: 'I dedicated and invested a large part of my life into doing that. And I loved doing what I did.

'To wake up and have that all taken away and gone, and have people say the things that they said about me, that were not true. And to have people turn their back on you really hurt.'

According to Bell's defense attorney Rick Lyerly, the case started as a school rumor that 'accelerated' into accusations.

He revealed that Bell was forced to move in with her mother when the allegations surfaced, lost her job and couldn't get work.

He said electronic and DNA evidence 'came back negative' and the student has since stated that 'these events never occurred'.

Lyerly told AL.com: 'Our position was always that she was wrongfully accused, that these events never occurred.

'I think once all the evidence was gathered and presented to the District Attorney's Office, they did the right thing and agreed to the dismissal.'

He added that Bell is the victim in the case, having 'lost her job, sold her home, moved in with her mom,' and 'couldn't get work'.

The indictment, filed last May, alleged that Bell had engaged in sexual conduct with a male student between December 2012 and November 2013.

She was charged with three counts of engaging in sexual intercourse with a student younger than 19 and one count of touching a student.

In an order passed this week, Bell was granted 'full, complete, and absolute release from all civil and criminal liability stemming directly or indirectly' from the case.

'The District Attorney's got more important things to do than fool with cases that have no merit,' Lyerly said.

'I think this was the right result and nobody wants to see teachers take advantage of students. But when the teacher did nothing wrong and still gets charged, it makes a sad story.

'She is actually the real victim in this case.'