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Thursday, February 21, 2008

Editorial: We Must Hold Back Judgment

By

    When you hear of a teacher being charged with crimes against children, you tend to think it's something that happens elsewhere.
    Now we find these problems in our own backyard. On Friday, longtime Estancia track coach Grey Nevelos was arraigned on four charges of sexual contact of a minor and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Four girls have come forward with the charges.
    Rumors started floating around Estancia several months ago. The school district started its own investigation and determined the allegations were serious enough to call in law enforcement.
    As expected, there is still plenty of talk around Estancia about Nevelos. Some people may have already condemned him and others may think he is the victim of a modern witch hunt.
    It is important to remember that our judicial system guarantees a fair trial where an accused can answer the charges against him and be judged by a jury of his peers. All of us are presumed innocent of charges until proved beyond a reasonable doubt otherwise.
    Despite that, it's doubtful that Nevelos will ever teach or coach at Estancia High School again and it's fairly certain that the lives of at least five people have been altered dramatically.
    As citizens, it is our responsibility to uphold the standards of the community. Our courts are the arbiters of those standards and we should reserve our judgments about Nevelos and the four girls who are making accusations until the legal system has sifted through the evidence and reached a decision.