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Cortez Quinn / Photo: TRUSD
Former Twin Rivers Unified school board member Cortez Quinn was sentenced to one year in the county jail, District Attorney Jan Scully announced today.
The Honorable Laurel D. White ordered Quinn, 47, serve 240 days of his sentence in custody before being eligible to apply for a Sheriff’s work release program. Quinn will be on formal probation for five years.
Quinn previously pled no contest to felony conspiracy to obstruct justice, and misdemeanor illegal acceptance of personal loans and gifts from an employee by an elected official.
While on the Twin Rivers Unified school board, Quinn developed a personal relationship with a female school employee. From December 2010 through April 2011, she gave Quinn gifts totaling $4,000, and loans totaling over $50,000. State law makes it illegal for a school board member to receive loans from an employee of the district, and the gifts exceeded the $420 gift limit.
Quinn’s relationship with this employee resulted in her pregnancy and the birth of a son in December 2011. The employee filed a paternity action, and the court ordered Quinn to submit to DNA testing.
Quinn went to Comprehensive Medical, Inc., where laboratory technician Andre Pearson was employed to collect DNA samples. Quinn and Pearson conspired to submit a false DNA sample under Quinn’s name, which resulted in a paternity test fraudulently showing Quinn was not the father. Quinn used that test result in court to deny paternity.
Judge White sentenced Pearson, 37, to 180 days in custody. Pearson previously pled no contest to misdemeanor conspiracy to obstruct justice. Pearson will be on informal probation for three years.
Both defendants were immediately taken into custody to begin serving their terms.
By law, Quinn is disqualified from being a candidate for any elective office or acting as a lobbyist for four years.
The Twin Rivers Unified school board is expected to appoint Quinn’s replacement within the coming week.
Cortez most likely got what he deserved; Patricia Robertson – SCUSD DWI teacher – most likely will get what she deserves. Both Cortez and Robertson violated the trust of school children
Hopefully Theodore Judah Elementary School Principal Corrie Buckmaster-Celeste gets what she deserves. In case you do not know, Buckmaster-Celeste, in March and April 2014, with her rowdy alcohol PTA pals, for a party, advertised for the collection of alcohol, on facebook, school district e mail, and in front of the school, in front of our young students, and had a vehicle parked in front of the school that said “Wine Car,” to collect the alcohol. The advertisements also stated that alcohol will be collected and stored in the school office, for parents who missed the “wine car.”
Buckmaster-Celeste violated school, city, county, state, and federal laws, by advertising, glorifying, collecting, and storing alcohol in front of an elementary school, and in the school office. And morally and ethically, what a bad example for elementary age students.
When complaints were filed against Buckmaster-Celeste, she lied and said it was a distrusted and crazy PTA member that did this all on her own. No so!! Buckmaster-Celeste is a tight fisted principal, a control freak, who does not let a thing occur at the school, without her knowledge. Additionally, there were several alcohol drives in front of her school, and her office faces the street, exactly where the alcohol was being collected, in the chevy suburban “wine car,” and her school e mail and facebook also advertised that alcohol will be stored in the school office, for those who missed the “wine car.”
At the SCUSD, District Headquarters, Area Superintendent Mary Hardin-Young, Patrick Kennedy, Cindy Kilby, and Simmons-Smith from HR, conducted a sham investigation, designed to protect the district’s name and Buckmaster-Celeste. All ignored Buckmaster-Celeste’s violations, alcohol in the presence harm to our kids, and basically looked the other way, and allowed her to lie her way out “that she didn’t know that alcohol was being advertised on facebook, email, collected in front of the school, and stored in her office. And if Buckmaster-Celeste did not know of this rampant alcohol activity at her school, she should be fired, for not knowing what is going on at her school. Was she too drunk to not know what is going on at her school?
To protect our kids, and get a new investigation by SCUSD into Principal Buckmaster-Celeste alcohol violations, escapades, and lies, at Theodore Judah elementary school, please contact new Superintendent Jose Banda at (916)643-7400.
Two-faced greedy, lying hypocrite was claiming a steadfast commitment to the community & students, all while engaging in fraud not to pay child support. Not to mention using his clout to bed multiple female school district employees & extract $45K.