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Minnesota Senate committee advances bills designed to protect students from grooming

By
Jennifer Mayerle
Jennifer Mayerle
Investigative Reporter
Jennifer Mayerle happily returned to Minnesota and WCCO, where she began her career as a summer intern. The Emmy and Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist returned to WCCO as a reporter in 2014 and later also anchored WCCO Saturday Morning for 6 years. Then in early 2024 she focused on her new role as Senior Investigative Reporter.
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Jennifer Mayerle

/ CBS Minnesota

A bill to protect students from grooming made its way to a Minnesota Senate committee on Monday.

Members of the Senate Education Policy Committee heard testimony. It follows a WCCO Investigates series on the topic.

The would make grooming a felony offense. For the past few weeks, WCCO has reported on the companion bill making its way through the House.

A was introduced in the Senate, working with the Professional Educators Licensing and Standards Board, or PELSB, to increase transparency and close loopholes.

DFL Sen. Erin Maye Quade introduced the bills that would offer more protections for students. 

"The reason for this bill is, frankly, heartbreaking. But I'm hoping that its passage by this committee can help protect future generation of students," Maye Quade said.

The bills are inspired by Hannah LoPresto, a young woman who came forward in WCCO's investigative series to share what she says is the grooming and sexual assault by her high school band teacher. 

She, along with the police detective who investigated her case, spoke before members about the importance of the bills. In one part, they addressed why data sharing between investigative agencies when looking at a teacher's license is critical, and how the practice could impact victim survivors.

"When a victim survivor submits a complaint themselves, this is a significant decision to reengage with the abuser. This feels scary, and it impacts your safety. Investigative data sharing between agencies prevents future victim survivors from having to file their own complaint like I did," LoPresto said.

"Data sharing. It is standard practice to interview children and/or victim survivors of sexual abuse only once, when feasible, requiring data sharing between PELSB, counties and MDE follow this accepted approach," Eagan Police Department Detective Chad Clausen said.

Members commended LoPresto for her bravery in speaking up.

Both bills passed out of committee unanimously and now head to the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee.

Tuesday, the House companion bill on criminalizing grooming will get its third hearing.

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