SALISBURY, Md.- A Wicomico County Public Schools guidance counselor arrested earlier this year on child sex crimes has pleaded guilty.
Allen E. Mitchell, 33, of Salisbury, appeared in Wicomico County Circuit Court on Wednesday where he pleaded guilty to four charges: sexual abuse of a minor, manufacturing of child pornography, contributing to the condition of a minor and telephone misuse: obscene matter.
Judge S. James Sarbanes ordered that a mandatory presentence investigation along with a mental health evaluation be completed prior to the sentencing hearing.
Wicomico County State's Attorney Jamie Dykes said the state will seek a significant period of incarceration within the Division of Corrections. As a result of Mitchell’s convictions, Mitchell faces up to 41 years in the Division of Corrections and he will be required to register for life as a Tier III (high-risk) sex offender.
Court documents show that over the course of several years, Mitchell, a Wicomico County Public School employee who worked as a guidance counselor at James M. Bennett High School in Salisbury, engaged in inappropriate conduct with
two minor victims and further engaged in sexual acts with a third minor victim.
Court documents show all three victims attended public schools within the county.
Mitchell, who was arrested in January, had been facing more than 30 charges prior to his guilty plea.
To read the full narrative from Mitchell's charging court documents, click here.
Following Mitchell's guilty plea Wednesday, Dykes sent an open letter to Wicomico County schools and the community, referring to some recent events that "challenge our community."
Dykes specifically commented on the Mitchell case, in which she wrote, "I, as do many of you, have unanswered questions: How could a person entrusted with the safety, well-being and development of our children use that position to perpetrate some of the worst violations against them for his own criminal desires?"
Dykes went on to write that at his sentencing Mitchell will be "held accountable for his conduct."
