A Florida teacher resigned after the local sheriff’s office discovered that she had been engaging in explicit video chats with her inmate boyfriend during school hours.
Donna Barber, 52, was told she would likely be fired from her job with the Franklin County School District, but she decided to resign this week. She was close to retirement after working as a teacher for almost 30 years.
Earlier this month, Franklin County Sheriff AJ Smith assigned a staff member to monitor inmates’ video chats at the local jail. The staff member discovered that Barber was undressing during some of his calls with inmate Lawrence Ray and had had a sexual conversation.
A review of the couple’s previous video calls showed that Barber was having similar explicit video conversations with Ray, some of which took place from his school office during work hours.
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Donna Barber, 52, was told she would likely be fired from her job with the Franklin County School District, but she decided to resign this week.
(LinkedIn/Donna Barber)
“Jail is not a resource,” Smith told the New York Post. “People in prison have to abide by the rules, they have to have order. Otherwise, there can be chaos and it can be dangerous for the staff who have to deal with the inmates.”
Smith initially posted a video on Facebook earlier this month about his concerns about inappropriate correspondence between inmates and their visitors, pointing to Barber’s case. But the sheriff removed the video because it generated inappropriate comments.
The local state attorney said the case did not warrant criminal charges, but Barber’s school began looking into the matter after Smith posted the video.
Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Truck
(Franklin County Sheriff’s Office)
The school originally did not know the calls occurred on campus and later expanded its investigation after finding out. Barber was told this week that the school board would recommend termination, so he decided to resign.
Smith noted that prison video calls have become more common in recent years because they require fewer staff than in-person visits.
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Badge of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office
(Franklin County Sheriff’s Office)
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Individuals engaging in video chat with an inmate must agree to prison rules, including that the conversation may be monitored or recorded and that illegal or inappropriate conduct, such as indecent exposure, will not be permitted.
The video can also be stopped at any time by employees monitoring calls if they feel they have become inappropriate.
