Ex-‘Survivor’ Contestant Whipped Baby as College Headmaster, Blamed ‘Cancel Tradition’

A Louisiana pastor and Christian college headmaster who was as soon as a contestant on Survivor has been convicted of cruelty to juveniles.

On Monday, Sept. 23, a jury in St. Tammany Parish discovered John Raymond, 62, of Lacombe, responsible of three felony expenses of cruelty to juveniles for placing tape on the heads of three college students to maintain their mouths closed as a result of they have been speaking an excessive amount of, a St. Tammany Parish Court docket clerk confirmed to PEOPLE.

Raymond, who has served as headmaster of Lakeside Christian College in Slidell, was additionally convicted of second-degree cruelty to juveniles for placing his hand over the mouth of a 4-year-old boy who was having a tantrum, which prevented the boy from respiration and made him go “limp,” police mentioned in an announcement.

“I’m not responsible,” Raymond mentioned after the decision, NOLA.com experiences. “I’ve by no means been merciless to a toddler, and I really like kids.” 

Raymond, who was a contestant on Survivor: Thailand in 2002, mentioned he was a sufferer of “cancel tradition,” NOLA.com experiences.

His authorized troubles started on April 7, 2022, when the Slidell Police Division arrested Raymond after receiving a grievance from the Division of Youngsters and Household Companies (DCFS) about potential youngster abuse on the college, the division mentioned in an announcement.

The grievance acknowledged that Raymond taped a number of college students’ mouths shut as a type of self-discipline. 

Slidell Police launched an investigation that discovered that a number of college students, all 13 years previous, had been faraway from a category attributable to extreme speaking, the assertion mentioned.

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“John Raymond grew to become indignant and introduced the scholars to his workplace,” it mentioned. “In some unspecified time in the future, Raymond took a roll of packing tape and taped the scholars’ mouths shut by wrapping the tape round their heads.”

The assertion provides: “Raymond allegedly despatched the scholars again to class for round 45 minutes earlier than one other college administrator felt uncomfortable with the state of affairs and eliminated the tape from the scholars’ faces.” 

On Might 9, 2022, police arrested him once more and charged him with one depend of cruelty to a juvenile when a 4-year-old who would have “occasional tantrums” was crying and screaming, police mentioned in an announcement.

“Raymond allegedly positioned his hand over the boy’s nostril and mouth (stopping him from respiration) to the purpose of him going “limp,” the assertion mentioned. 

“A employees member informed Raymond to cease, after which noticed the boy ‘out of it and torpid,’ ‘unable to face,’ and noticed ‘mucous’ come out of the boy’s nostril, as he tried to breathe,” the assertion mentioned.

In one other incident, Raymond allegedly held the boy the wrong way up by his ankles and repeatedly “whipped him on the buttocks,” the assertion mentioned.

He was remanded to the St. Tammany Parish Jail and was launched on $100,000 bond on Tuesday, Sept. 24. 

His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 23. He faces as much as 40 years in jail.

His legal professional and the college didn’t instantly reply to PEOPLE’s request for remark.

In case you suspect youngster abuse, name the Childhelp Nationwide Baby Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Baby or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is accessible 24/7 in additional than 170 languages.