School teacher pleads guilty to sexually abusing his elementary students
MUSKOGEE, Okla. – A former Adair County elementary school teacher accused of sexually abusing 10 second and fourth-grade students pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a seven-year-old child.
Lawrence Fourkiller, 47, of Stilwell, entered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma to aggravated sexual abuse of a child in Indian Country.
Fourkiller faces up to a life sentence and a $250,000 fine, according to the plea agreement.
Fourkiller opted to plea instead of going forward with a jury trial set to begin on April 29, court records show.
Fourkiller was employed as a teacher at Stilwell Elementary School from 2018 to 2023. He admitted that between August 2020 and May 2021 he sexually abused a second-grade student.
Initially, Fourkiller was charged with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse and eight counts of abusive sexual contact. The plea agreement dismissed the remaining counts.
School officials were notified of the accusations against Fourkiller, and when they investigated them internally, they determined Fourkiller’s actions were not sexual in nature and sent Fourkiller home for the day, according to the motion filed by federal prosecutors.
Despite school officials being mandatory reporters, school administrators did not contact law enforcement or the Department of Human Services, the motion states.
After receiving more complaints school officials placed Fourkiller on administrative leave and the Stilwell Police Department was contacted.
All 10 victims reported Fourkiller inappropriately touched them. Fourkiller’s inappropriate touching was so prevalent a fourth-grade victim told investigators she and other female students “developed codes to help each other make the touching stop” by tapping on her leg or stomping her feet to signal that she needed help.
UNITED STATES’ FIRST MOTION IN LIMINE, Jan. 22,2024
Fourkiller’s pattern would be to call the second-grade girls up to his desk, where he had them sit on his lap and sexually assaulted them, the 12-page motion states.
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One victim told law enforcement every Friday Fourkiller would have movie days for the students. On one of those days, Fourkiller picked up and placed the child on his lap and put his hand under her shirt. The victim also told authorities how Fourkiller sexually assaulted her with his finger. After a while, the child began refusing to sit on Fourkiller’s lap and he retaliated by sending her to detention, the motion states.
Another victim told authorities that Fourkiller made her go under his desk where he exposed himself and made the child perform a sex act. Fourkiller would hold her back from her specialized classes, like PE, so he could have more alone time with her, the motion states.
Another victim “began to cry as she explained to the forensic interviewer that he was her teacher” and that Fourkiller “would have her sit on his lap and lay under her desk” where she was inappropriately touched.
A fourth victim said Fourkiller “would stand behind her at her desk and place his hands down her shirt” and “would touch her stomach and under her clothes.”
Another victim told authorities she “began to cry” stating “her mom tried to tell the school, but that nobody believed her.” The child also told authorities Fourkiller would call her to his desk, spread his legs, then have her stand between his legs and touch her backside, the pleading states.
Fourkiller asked another victim if she had ever been sexually abused. The child told authorities she told Fourkiller about her previous sexual abuse because “he’s my teacher and I can trust him so I told him everything – like what happened.” The victim told investigators Fourkiller told her he could not find the right spot to rub her back. The court pleading states that he began to use his hand to follow her bra strap.
She also told authorities she was lying on her desk asleep and woke up when she felt someone touching her, she looked up and saw Fourkiller standing over her and licking his lips saying, “It’s our time to shine.”
Fourkiller, who was arrested at the Dallas Ft. Worth International Airport, remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending sentencing.
A civil lawsuit was filed against Stillwell Elementary School.
