Portland Public Schools employee pleads not guilty to sex abuse charges, records show

Article from The Oregonian

A Portland Public Schools employee who has been on leave since November 2015 pleaded not guilty Monday to sex abuse charges involving a girl under 14 years old, court records show.

Brett Christy-Hamilton, 31, worked at Whitman Elementary from the beginning of the 2015-16 academic year until he was put on leave, a district spokeswoman said. The alleged abuse happened in early November 2015.

Christy-Hamilton was hired as a paraeducator in the 2009-10 academic year, Courtney Westling, a district spokeswoman, said in an email. He’s facing a pair of first-degree sex abuse charges.

Christy-Hamilton worked at Marysville School during the 2014-15 academic year, Westling said. He also worked on temporary student worker assignments for the district each year from 2005 to 2007.

He was booked Monday into the Multnomah County Jail and released on bail the same day, according to jail records.

Westling didn’t say whether the alleged abuse involved a district student or anyone Christy-Hamilton came in contact with while on the job.

“The district will cooperate with any forthcoming investigation,” she said.

Paraeducators work with and under teachers to provide instructional support, and many work with special needs students, according to the National Education Association.

Read more about the Christy-Hamilton case here:

• Ex-PPS worker arrested for sex abuse of young girl
• Portland Public Schools employee accused of child sex abuse

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