The Niagara Wheatfield student who pleaded guilty this week to raping another student at the school has been removed.
- Niagara Wheatfield student pleaded guilty to raping another student
- The rapist has now been removed and is banned from school property
- Superintendent says the school was only made aware of the guilty plea Thursday
Officials at the district are fighting back, saying they never knowingly let a convicted felon near his victim.
Claims against the district came to light Thursday when a friend of the victim's family wrote a Facebook post saying the rapist was allowed at school despite a restraining order.
But the district says that's not accurate.
Daniel G. Ljiljanich, the school's superintendent, said Friday the school couldn't do much until the case got through the legal system.
Now that the student has pleaded guilty to the assault, which happened last summer and not on school property, Ljiljanich said the school can impose punishment.
He said the school was only made aware of the guilty plea Thursday and immediate action was taken.
The student is now banned from school property and won't return for the rest of the school year.
When word of the incident first came to light Thursday, people took to social media to ask why the student was still allowed to attend school, despite an order of protection issued to the victim.
The Niagara Wheatfield School District has confirmed the student's guilty plea in the matter.
In his initial statement on the district's website, Ljiljanich said in part,
“I was just informed that the student accused plead guilty to unlawful conduct this past week in court. As a district, we are now in a position to address the situation directly and will do so. This has been a challenging time for those involved and for our district community. I ask you respect their privacy.”
The statement also notes that counseling is being provided for families.