A trial is underway for the longtime spokesman for Loudoun County Public Schools accused of lying under oath when he testified to a grand jury that investigated two sexual assaults committed by the same high school student.
Wayde Byard was indicted on a felony count of perjury last December. Prosecutors said Byard lied to the grand jury that looked into how the school district handled the crimes.
A 14-year-old student sexually assaulted a female student at Stone Bridge High School in May 2021, but was allowed to transfer to Broad Run High School, where he abducted and sexually assaulted another female student in October of 2021. The teen was later convicted in juvenile court.
During his testimony, Byard said he didn't know about the first sexual assault at Stone Bridge High School until after the second assault happened at Broad Run High School.
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According to court documents, a prosecutor for the Commonwealth asked Byard, "Can you tell us when you became aware of the incident that propelled your school system into the hot white light of public concern?"
"Probably after the arrest at Broad Run … in October," Byard replied.
"And you're telling the members of this special grand jury that it wasn't until October 6th of 2021 that you were actually aware that a student at Stone Bridge High school, who was a male student, walked into the females' bathroom and sexually assaulted and was subsequently charged with two counts of forceable sodomy? You didn't know that?" the prosecutor asked.
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"No, ma'am. At that point that would be a student record and it would be either a student disciplinary record that I'm not privy to, so, no, I would not be privy to that kind of information," Byard said.
Byard has pleaded not guilty. He is on administrative leave from his position with the school system.
The grand jury issued a scathing report in December about the school system's handling of the sexual assaults, saying that the second assault could have been avoided.
