An Arkansas school director and three others are facing serious charges after prosecutors say they turned a private school into a “makeshift child fight club,” allowing and encouraging abuse among students.
Mary Tracy Morrison, Michael Bean, Kristin Bell, and Kathrine Lipscomb were arrested earlier this week following a court hearing where Craighead County District Judge David Boling found probable cause to move forward with the case.
According to prosecutor Sonia Hagood, the charges were filed after a disturbing 30-minute video surfaced showing what happened inside The Delta Institute for the Developing Brain. In the footage, a teacher can reportedly be heard ordering one boy to hit another “in the private area.”
Hagood told the court that Morrison, 50, who owns the school, acted as the “ringleader” of the abuse. She asked that Morrison’s bail be set at $250,000. Lipscomb, 45, identified as a teacher, was allegedly present during the entire ordeal and did nothing to intervene. “If you had seen what I saw, you would be just as outraged as I am,” Hagood said, pushing for Lipscomb’s bail to be set at $100,000.
Meanwhile, Bean, 38, and Bell, 36 — who are both parents of students at the school — were also implicated. Reports indicate they, too, were actively involved.
After learning that warrants had been issued, all four individuals voluntarily surrendered, according to The Jonesboro Sun.
At Monday’s hearing, jail records show the judge followed Hagood’s bail recommendations: Lipscomb was held on $100,000 bail, while Bean and Bell were each set at $10,000. Morrison’s lawyer, Paul Stanley, challenged the charges, arguing that the arrest affidavit was “insufficient,” and pointed out that none of the defense attorneys had seen the video before the hearing.
All four were booked into jail on April 21 but were quickly released later the same day, according to Jonesboro Right Now. Their next court date is scheduled for May 22 in Craighead County Circuit Court.
Adding another layer to the case, Hagood requested that all court filings be sealed for 90 days while investigators continue digging into the activities at the school.