CLAYTON — Normandy Middle School teacher, Christopher Daniels, is currently detained at the Justice Center in Clayton facing serious charges related to sex crimes involving a minor. Daniels, a 41-year-old resident of Berkeley, is accused of engaging in a sexual relationship with a 12-year-old girl.

The Pagedale Police Department looked into the alleged crimes, which took place in Pagedale. According to court documents, the victim informed her mother about the relationship, mentioning that she had met Daniels outside her house on at least two occasions between March 1 and April 14 of this year. Text messages from the victim’s phone indicate ongoing communication between her and Daniels during the period the crimes were committed.

Daniels has been charged with one count of statutory rape or attempted statutory rape, along with four counts of statutory sodomy or attempted statutory sodomy. He is currently being held on a $500,000 cash-only bond.

A spokesperson for Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell says Daniels was dismissed from his job with the Normandy Schools Collaborative after the victim came forward in this case. A spokesperson for Normandy schools says he can’t confirm if Daniels has been fired from his job because of human resources concerns. But he does confirm that Daniels was removed from the Normandy Middle School building when the case came to light and he has not been back.

The Normandy School District released this statement about the incident:

On March 27, Normandy School Collaborative officials were alerted to potentially inappropriate written communication between a teacher at Normandy Middle School at Lucas Crossing and a student. Upon receiving this information, school officials immediately removed the teacher from the building and reported the inappropriate communication to the appropriate authorities.

District officials became aware of the police investigation on April 15. We are cooperating with local law enforcement and will provide any new information as needed that may help in their investigation.

We are deeply troubled by any report alleging an employee may have engaged in inappropriate behavior. We have no tolerance for any actions that harm or could potentially harm our students. This alleged incident goes against our professional standards as a school district. All district employees must pass a criminal background check as a condition of employment, and we expect our teachers and staff to adhere to the highest standards of conduct.

Normandy School District