Retired teacher charged with sex crimes against first-grader

CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. – A recently retired Clayton County teacher has been charged with sex crimes against a first-grader, but records show the complaints against him date back to 2001.

Mark Winne, investigative reporter for Channel 2 spoke to the victim's mother and the suspect, William Zerressen.

The mother explained that she took her little daughter to a psychologist when she started having such serious problems.

Last year, the daughter revealed to her cousins that she had been abused, leading to criminal charges being filed against Zerressen and the revelation of long-standing allegations.

“When I think about what he made my daughter do, I can hardly sleep at night,” said the mother.

Zerressen denied the allegations and said: “This is completely untrue. This is slander.”

The mother continued: “If all these allegations had resurfaced since 2001, this man should not have been allowed to work as a teacher at this school.”

The family's attorney, Kyle Wallace, added: “The school system has a lot of questions to answer.”

The mother said she dropped her then six-year-old daughter off for first grade at Kemp Primary School in Clayton County in 2017. Years later, she learned of the alleged Zerressen abuse.

“I'm angry. I'm hurt. I feel betrayed,” the mother said.

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Last month, a judge found there was sufficient probable cause to issue arrest warrants for aggravated child abuse, aggravated sodomy and seduction of a child for immoral purposes.

“I am innocent of these heinous allegations. They are simply ridiculous. They are unfounded,” said Zerressen.

This year, the mother discovered a suicide note in her then 13-year-old daughter's lunchbox. The letter revealed the extent of the trauma her daughter was feeling.

“She said she felt dirty because of what he had done to her,” the mother explained.

Then the mother learned that the Clayton County school system had received numerous complaints about tearing since 2001.

“The school has let her down,” the mother explained.

A 2022 letter from Clayton County Public Schools to Zerressen highlighted trends in student complaints, detailing allegations from 2001, 2003 and 2022 describing inappropriate touching.

The letter also states that Zerressen claimed that an assistant principal told him that the students had planned the allegations together. Zerressen told Winne that he was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Kyle Wallace stressed: “There is a long list of allegations against this teacher. There is no indication of any disciplinary action.”

Wallace stated that the 2001 and 2003 incidents involved Lake Ridge Elementary and that records did not provide enough evidence, according to the school system. He praised Clayton County School Police for their work in his client's case, but noted that police were not called to investigate the incidents in 2001, 2003, or 2022.

“It looks like a lot more should have been done,” Wallace said.

Zerressen strongly denied ever having touched a child inappropriately.

The mother said God and therapy helped her and her daughter recover.

“Prayers, lots of prayers,” she said.

In 2023, Zerressen received a letter congratulating him on his retirement. An emailed statement from the school district acknowledged the allegations against the former employee but did not comment due to the sensitivity of the matter. The district reiterated its commitment to student safety.

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