School Fires Domestic Violence Victim For Fear Of Her Abusive Ex-Husband

A private school in San Diego fired a domestic violence victim after her school district deemed that it was too dangerous to keep the mother of four in the school.

Holy Trinity School decided to fire sixth-grade teacher Carie Charlesworth after a domestic violence dispute earlier this year. The school send a letter to Charlesworth that said her ex-husband’s “threatening and menacing behavior” was too much of a concern and that they could no longer allow her to work at the school.

The incident took place in January when Charlesworth called police after what she called “a very bad weekend with him.” The next day, she went to her principal at Holy Trinity School and warned the principal of her ex-husband.

Her ex-husband did in fact show up at the school parking lot shortly afterward, forcing the school to go into lockdown. From that day on, Carie Charlesworth and her four children who were attending the school have not returned. The school sent a letter home to parents that explained what happened and said that Charlesworth and her children were being put on “indefinite leave.”

Though her husband was taken to jail on felony charges, Charlesworth said she feels like she’s being treated like a criminal.

“They’ve taken away my ability to care for my kids,” said Charlesworth. “It’s not like I can go out and find a teaching job anywhere.”

After three months Charlesworth got even worse news — the school decided it would fire the domestic violence victim, also barring her from working in any of the other Diocesan schools in the area.

A letter from the school said the domestic violence victim’s husband was the sole reason for her firing:

“We know from the most recent incident involving you and Mrs. Wright (the principal) while you were still physically at Holy Trinity School, that the temporary restraining order in effect were not a deterrent to him. Although we understand he is current incarcerated, we have no way of knowing how long or short a time he will actually serve and we understand from court files that he may be released as early as next fall. In the interest of the safety of the students, faculty and parents at Holy Trinity School, we simply cannot allow you to return to work there, or, unfortunately, at any other school in the Diocese.”

The domestic violence victim fired by the school now has a lawyer and said she intends to sue the school. Charlesworth added that she feels trapped — she will stop getting paychecks at the end of August with no job prospects in sight,while her husband is scheduled to be released from jail at the end of June.