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MAYWOOD — The Maywood Public Schools superintendent who has been charged with felony child abuse has had his case bound over to Frontier County Court.
Mark Bejot, 64, has been charged with committing intentional child abuse – no injury, a Class 3A felony and false reporting, a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Bejot appeared for a preliminary hearing in Frotnier County Court on Dec. 6 and the case was taken under advisement by Judge Anne Paine.
Paine in an order noted that after reviewing the evidence of the preliminary hearing, which is held to determine if a crime had been committed and not the guilt of the defendant, that there was sufficient evidence and had the matter bound over to district court.
On Dec. 30, in Frontier District Court, Bejot through his legal counsel, issued a plea in abatement, claiming that the state failed to establish probable cause that a felony crime was committed at the preliminary hearing.
Bejot has filed bail in the amount of $4,500.
Per an affidavit submitted by the state in the case, they noted that the Maywood Public Schools principal Lucas McCain confirmed that Bejot was reinstated as the superintendent of the district during a school board meeting on Dec. 16 and returned to school on Dec. 17.
The investigator with the Nebraska Attorney General’s office who is prosecuting the case felt there was probable cause to amend Bejot’s bail conditions to include no contact with any minors at this time.
District Judge Patrick Heng ruled that Bejot will have no contact with the alleged victim and that he shall remove himself from his office and immediate area during the last period of classes when the alleged victim has any school activities in the area next to the superintendent’s office.
A status hearing on the case was held on Jan. 6.
According to an affidavit filed in Frontier County Court, the Frontier County Sheriff’s Office started an investigation after a family member contacted the office who was concerned about an incident at the school involving a 12-year-old student.
The affidavit notes that Bejot approached the 12-year-old who was wearing a cowboy hat in the school commons area and asked him to remove the hat.
Surveillance video and witness statements indicate that Bejot attempted to take the hat after the student took it off and held it to their side opposite Bejot.
Bejot then “leaps for the hat, wrapping his arms around (the student) as he stands behind him,” according to the affidavit.
The video shows the student attempting to keep the hat away from Bejot, but Bejot is pulling backwards on his arms. “It then appears that Bejot hooks his hands into (the student’s) armpits pulling backwards,” per the affidavit.
The student then fell to the floor from the stool they were sitting on.
“It appears that (the student) is attempting to get off the floor, but Bejot is pushing down on his shoulders keeping him from standing up and pulling at the cowboy hat,” the affidavit states.
Bejot gets the hat from the student’s hand and lets them up. The video shows Bejot stepping toward the student, who then raises a fist and Bejot backed up slightly.
Speaking later with the Frontier County Sheriff’s Office, the student reported getting a cut or scratch from the incident as a result of Bejot’s actions.
Upon review of the video and hearing witness statements, the Frontier County Sheriff’s Office believed, “the conduct of Bejot was unnecessary and excessive for the school policy violation that initiated the contact,” per the affidavit.
An arrest warrant was issued for Bejot on Monday, Oct. 21 and returned on Oct. 24.
The case is being prosecuted by the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office.
