Horrific Sexual Assault Case Against School Superintendent's Son Divides Town

The Des Moines Register ran a sad story this past weekend about awful sexual assault accusations against a school superintendent's son that have divided the conservative town of Treynor, Iowa.

Kreighton Elwood, the 18-year-old son of Superintendent Kevin Elwood, was accused of sexually assaulting three different girls in 2012. He allegedly took them to a secluded area, forced them to remove their clothes, and hid their car keys and phones to keep them from escaping, according to court records cited by The Register. He also allegedly snapped photos of one victim nearly naked, a form of humiliation that is becoming all too common in teenage sexual assaults.

While Kreighton Elwood was originally charged with sexual abuse and kidnapping, he ended up pleading guilty in September to lesser charges of assault and false imprisonment. He spent just 14 days in jail and has to register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Many people in the town of Treynor are still upset about the case. In December, local residents started a petition asking for Kevin Elwood's resignation on the grounds that he didn't properly investigate reports of sexual abuse and harassment.

Jeff Driver, whose daughter was one of Kreighton Elwood's victims, also said school officials didn't do enough to ensure that the teen stayed away from school grounds after his arrest.

"Right now I feel we're getting the shaft, just because I don't think there's been a complete and thorough investigation," Driver told the Register. "I don't know if the superintendent did anything wrong. I just don't feel (school officials) did anything right either."

One mother who spoke to the paper said the town has a tendency to sweep reports of sexual assault under the rug. The mother, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said two of her daughter's classmates tried to assault her last spring. She decided not to go to police because she thought the case would be too hard to prosecute.

"Treynor is a very conservative town. If you're a boat rocker, you're not welcome," the mother said. "People don't like to talk about anything bad in that town."