Defense questions merit of criminal charges against Mercer County Superintendent

MERCER COUNTY, Ill. – No ruling was made on probable cause for criminal charges against the Mercer County Schools Superintendent in the Oct. 20 hearing.

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Judge finds probable cause to proceed with case against Mercer County Schools Superintendent

Superintendent Timothy Farquer, 53, faces multiple charges including Official Misconduct, a Class 3 Felony.

Farquer is accused of ordering a school nurse to disclose vaccination information to him before compiling the data into a digital document and then giving it to an unauthorized person.

Farquer is also charged with Unauthorized Access to Medical Records, and Computer Tampering, both Class A Misdemeanors.

On Oct. 20, a probable cause hearing was held to determine if there is enough evidence to move forward with the case.

Aledo Police Detective Lindsey Kenney was called to the stand to testify.

New details.

According to Kenney’s testimony, Mercer County High School nurse Amber Wood told police, earlier this school year, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) provided the school guidance regarding a surge in Hand Foot and Mouth disease (HFM.) In April, Wood told police the school received guidance regarding Measles.

According to Kenney, Wood said Farquer requested names and contact information of students who were infected. She told police she was ‘uncomfortable’ giving Farquer identifying information from medical records, saying she felt it was ‘unlawful.’

Regarding HFM, Wood told police she initially only gave ‘generic’ information to Farquer because there were only six cases and the state doesn’t consider cases reportable until there are 10 or more cases within a 10 day period, according to Kenney’s testimony.

As for Measles, Kenney said Wood told police she didn’t believe Farquer should be given identifying information because it was not considered a public health emergency.

Kenney testified her decision to pursue criminal charges was based on the The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA,) which states the following:

“In some situations, school administrators may determine that it is necessary to disclose personally identifiable information (PII) from a student’s education records to appropriate parties in order to address a health or safety emergency.“

It goes on to say these disclosures are permitted only when it is necessary, ‘to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals.’

Nonetheless, Kenney said Wood told police Farquer ‘demanded’ staff to compile a list of students and vaccine records.

Kenney said Wood told police she ultimately complied with Faruqer’s demands because she ‘felt targeted’ and thought she would lose her job if she didn’t.

Kenney testified Farquer uploaded the list to a Google Drive managed by the school district with restricted access.

However, in addition to Farquer and school nurses, police say Teachers Union Representative Amanda Heinrich also had access to the Google Drive holding the students’ medical records.

Kenney said Farquer told Aledo’s Chief of Police Adam Baker he was ‘not aware’ Heinrich had access to the Google Drive and that Wood’s concerns were a result of ‘miscommunication.’

The defense.

Farquer’s attorney pointed out that HIPAA laws do not apply to Farquer. Adding, as head of the school district, he has legal authority to access students’ medical information under the Illinois School Records Act, of which gives authority to school officials to release information in an emergency, but still requires parental notification.

It is unclear if parents were notified about the handling of the medical records pertaining to these criminal charges.

Kenney admitted to the defense she did not review other state codes or statutes beyond what is outlined in FERPA, saying she believed federal laws ‘supercede’ local and state regulations.

The defense argued federal statutes are not relevant in this case and that there was a ‘misapplication’ and ‘misunderstanding’ of the law by investigators and prosecutors.

While the health alert, and accompanying guidance, sent out by IDPH in August for Hand Foot and Mouth Disease, states no action is necessary when there are less than 10 cases, a memo from April regarding Measles outlines actions a school may take to prevent an outbreak.

However, despite confirmed cases of Measles in the state at the time, health officials noted there was not an outbreak.

What’s next?

The defense requested extra time to put their argument in writing as to why they believe Farquer acted within his legal authority as superintendent to access medical records in question in this case.

After a series of heated exchanges between prosecutors and the defense, the judge chose not to rule on probable cause and granted the defense’s request for more time and allow prosecutors to read and respond to their written arguments.

The probable cause hearing is set to resume Nov. 4 at 11 a.m.

NOV. 3 UPDATE: The probable cause hearing has been continued to an unknown date.

Meanwhile, the two IT staffers who also face criminal charges waived their right to a preliminary hearing and pled Not Guilty.

A pretrial conference for Andrea Long is set for Jan. 12 at 10 a.m.

A pretrial conference for Amberly Norton is set for Jan. 20 at 9 a.m.

This is a developing story. Updates will be provided as they become available.