BAYTOWN, Texas – An elementary school campus assistant principal was arrested and charged after dropping a bag of cocaine in an employee bathroom at a Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District campus, according to court documents.
Jessica Trice Sanchez, 40, of Houston, has been charged with possession of controlled substance in a drug-free zone.
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A staff member found the cocaine and then alerted the school’s principal. The campus police department began the investigation and learned Sanchez dropped cocaine in the bathroom. Police said she also had additional cocaine in her vehicle.
Sanchez was arrested. She is now out on $5,000 bond.
Travis Elementary School released the following statement regarding the incident:
“As educators, we must adhere to high professional standards as an example for our students, fellow colleagues and our community. When a colleague fails to meet those standards, we must be honest and transparent about those failures. Yesterday, a staff member made an irresponsible decision to bring illegal drugs into our school; specifically, into an employee bathroom, for personal use, to which no student had access.
“The drugs were found by a fellow staff member, who then alerted the principal. The principal contacted the GCCISD Police Department, who began a thorough investigation. Upon the conclusion of the investigation, the employee was arrested for possession of a controlled substance and the DA is moving forward with pressing charges. Goose Creek CISD is committed to maintaining an alcohol- and drug-free environment and will not tolerate the use of alcohol and illegal drugs in the workplace or at any school-related or school-sanctioned activities, on or off school property. Employees who use or are under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs as defined by the Texas Controlled Substances Act during working hours may be dismissed and the employee’s criminal record will be reported to the Division of Investigations for TEA.
“We are cooperating fully with the criminal investigation and will move forward swiftly to end the staff member’s employment with the district. We will not, under any circumstances, tolerate this type of behavior in our schools. Our campuses are a safe haven for students and we will not have students in unsafe environments. We apologize that this happened, and we will continue to do our best to provide a safe, positive environment for students to learn.”