Rasheda Rose appears in a booking photo. (North Las Vegas Police Department)
A Nevada substitute teacher made inappropriate comments and forced two 6th graders to kiss one another in front of their class, authorities in Las Vegas said.
Rasheda Rose, 29, stands accused of two counts of child abuse over the incident, according to the North Las Vegas Police Department.
Content warning: Allegations of disturbing child abuse follow.
The underlying incident occurred on Oct. 10 and first came to the broader public’s attention in a letter released two days later by Legacy Traditional – North Valley Charter School in North Las Vegas.
“We confirm recent reports of an incident with a 6th-grade substitute teacher,” the letter obtained by Law&Crime reads. “After school, it came to our attention that the substitute teacher, supplied to us by an external substitute teacher agency, made inappropriate comments towards students. The substitute teacher was not a Legacy Traditional Schools employee and will not return to a Legacy campus.”
Rose was arrested on Nov. 1.
An email later sent to parents clarified that the substitute teacher had forced two students “to kiss each other” while using “inappropriate language,” according to local CBS affiliate KLAS.
An arrest report obtained by the TV station offers additional details into the allegations against the educator.
One witness told police that Rose told the two students “they were kissing each other wrong” and started “telling them how to do it right,” according to the arrest report.
But that was allegedly just a small portion of what occurred inside the defendant’s classroom on the day in question.
The substitute teacher also gave students explicit lessons on bad behavior, police say. Rose allegedly told her class to lie to their next-period teacher and say they were taking a test, how to fully delete “deleted” messages and hide other content on their cellular phones, and how to make fake accounts.
In total, school authorities told police, seven different students and several additional teachers had stories to tell.
One student alleged that, upon arrival, Rose announced they would not be doing the school work left for them by their regular teacher, but would instead play the party game, “Never Have I Ever,” which is typically a drinking game focused on tawdry, illicit, or otherwise scandalous exploits.
During that game, the student allegedly told police, Rose asked the class “inappropriate questions.”
At one point, the teacher instructed some of the students to close the classroom’s emergency blinds. When students protested that the blinds should only be closed in an actual emergency, Rose allegedly said: “Close the [expletive] blinds.”
When students asked to leave the class to go use the restroom, the substitute teacher allegedly said no one was leaving.
One of the questions posed to students was which of the students were dating, police claim. When two of the students raised their hands, that’s when Rose allegedly forced them to go to the front of the class and kiss. They told police they obliged because they did not want to get in trouble.
“Imma ask those two if they can give us a show,” Rose allegedly can be heard saying in a recording of the incident that police say was made by one of the students. “We’re not going to say anything.”
Two other students allegedly provided audio recordings of what occurred in the charter school classroom that day.
“What happens in Mrs. Rose classroom, stays in Mrs. Rose classroom,” a voice can be heard saying, according to police.
The specific kissing instructions were also recorded, police say.
“I want it to be where everyone can see,” Rose allegedly says. “Imma count to five, once at five, I want yaw to share a lil peck.”
After an initial investigation, Rose herself allegedly called police and complained that the students were “acting in a sexual manner” and that her whole class that day was “acting inappropriately.”
On Oct. 31, a person who identified as a lawyer representing the substitute teacher called police to discuss the case. The lead officer explained that Rose would be arrested because there was probable cause for two counts of child abuse. The person on the other end of the phone then said they would call back to discuss the terms of surrender, police say, but they never did.
The next day, Rose herself allegedly called the lead investigator and said she didn’t have a lawyer but wanted one. She was arrested later that day.
The defendant was booked in the North Las Vegas Community Correctional Center. She is no longer being detained there.
According to police, the mother of one of the students forced to kiss in front of the class has since been bullied relentlessly. She said her daughter cries all the time and no longer wants to go to school.
Law&Crime reached out to the North Las Vegas Police Department for additional details on this case but no response was forthcoming.
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