An Owensboro man and former Daviess County Public Schools teacher will face additional charges after a third-degree sodomy of a minor case was presented to the Henderson County Grand Jury. These additional charges stem from allegations made by a 16-year-old Henderson student who said she and Harvey — her teacher at the time — engaged in sexual activity during the 2018-2019 school year.
Harvey, 27, was initially charged with one count of third-degree sodomy after a complaint about the sexual activity was made to the Henderson Police Department in September.
The Henderson County Grand Jury issued an indictment against Harvey last week and additionally charged the former teacher with three counts of third-degree sodomy of a minor and one count of first-degree sexual abuse.
Henderson County Commonwealth’s Attorney Bill Markwell said the additional charges were made after deeper investigation and witness interviews took place.
“The [additional charges] aren’t anything unusual,” Markwell said Monday. “Most cases start with our police agency and they make a determination [on what to charge the suspect with] in the field. Then the County Attorney reviews it and comes to us.”
Additional interviews from witnesses helped convince the grand jury to include more charges against Harvey. Markwell said these interviews were conducted with both students and staff at Henderson Central Learning Academy (HCLA), Harvey’s former school. All four sodomy charges and the sexual abuse charge pertain to the same female student.
“There were quite a few students and members of the staff who were interviewed and, as a result of the interviews and investigation, we added charges,” he said. “We felt it was appropriate to add them.”
As explained by Markwell, the grand jury is a panel that reviews the case and the actions of the County Attorney at the District Court level and determines whether the charges made are appropriate. The grand jury forms an indictment, and then an arraignment is held for the defendant wherein a jury trial is set.
All five charges against Harvey are Class D felonies, punishable by up to five years in prison.
Harvey will be given only one chance to take a plea agreement at a trial review that’s set for March 9. Otherwise, Markwell said, this case will go to a jury trial on March 17, 2020.
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