FORT WALTON BEACH — Formal charges of child abuse and child neglect have been brought against three Silver Sands employees who were arrested in January, according to a press release from the State Attorney for the First Judicial Court.

The new charges, which are third degree felonies, replace a more serious charge of aggravated child abuse that was levied in January. They are in the same classification as the charges Kenwood ESE teacher Marlynn Stillions faced. She was convicted and sentenced to seven years in prison.

The employees, Margaret Wolthers, an Exceptional Student Education teacher, and two aides, Diana Lacroix and Carolyn Madison, are accused of "unlawfully and willfully" abusing three young children between Sept. 1, 2018 and Nov. 18, 2018. The children are autistic, according to their original arrest reports.

Five days after being suspended by Gov. Ron DeSantis, Okaloosa County Superintendent of Schools Mary Beth Jackson on Wednesday requested a formal hearing from the Florida Senate to challenge DeSantis’ decision. Under state law, suspended officials can go to the Senate to seek to be reinstated.

Marcus Chambers was named the acting superintendent of the Okaloosa County School District following the suspension of Mary Beth Jackson by Governor Ron DeSantis. This is a conversation between Daily News reporter Tom McLaughlin and Chambers.

State Attorney 1st Circuit. William "Bill" Eddins speaks with Daily News reporter Tom McLaughlin on the suspension of Mary Beth Jackson by Governor Ron DeSantis

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Rodney Walker, Rodney Walker, school board member sits down with Heather Osbourne and discusses what he thinks about the grand jury report.

Listen to an interview between reporter Tom McLaughlin and Bill Eddins, First Judicial Circuit State Attorney on the grand jury findings related to the Okaloosa Conty School District

Listen to audio from a September school board meeting where Mary Beth Jackson seems to contradict herself about whether she saw the investigation report.

READERS GUIDE: Scandal OCSD >>>

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Listen to an interview between Daily News reporter Tom McLaughlin at State Attorney Bill Eddins.

Since the summer of 2017 The Northwest Florida Daily News has reported over 50 stories involving the Okaloosa County School District.

The stories ahave unraveled a host of issues involving alleged child abuse, public complaints, contradictions by school officials and grand jury involvement
It began in August when the Daily News confirmed that the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office was actively investigating allegations of child abuse involving a special needs student at Kenwood Elementary School. That, however, was just the tip of the iceberg for the Okaloosa County School District.

Since that revelation at Kenwood — first discovered by the little boy’s father, Eddie Perillo, after a year of being kept from public knowledge — investigations, harassment claims, public complaints, public misrepresentations and contradictions by district officials, arrests and a lawsuit have followed.
With a new discovery seemingly being made on a weekly basis — and sometimes daily — the current state of the school district is in the hands of the State Attorney’s Office, which is in the investigative stage of child abuse allegations involving special needs children at both Kenwood Elementary and Silver Sands School.

From the beginning, this story has belonged to the Daily News and we have placed all resources necessary — including monetary for past, present and future public records requests and consultation with legal experts — to cover investigations, allegations and revelations that have shocked our community.