Second Grader Says Classmates Had Sex in Class

Jan. 23, 2011— -- Police and Oakland, Calif., school officials are investigating a second grader's story that her classmates undressed and engaged in a sex act in a classroom, an allegation a district spokesman called "unthinkable."

A 7-year-old girl told a teacher's aide on Wednesday about two incidents, one in which she said some of her classmates stripped and another when two allegedly had oral sex.

"We believe if the reports are true, there was a serious lapse of judgment or lack of supervision in the classroom," said Troy Flint, a spokesman for the Oakland Unified School District told The Associated Press. "We're investigating how could this have happened. It seems unthinkable to us, just the same way it does to the public."

The school principal sent a letter to parents and staff of the Markham Elementary School on Thursday, informing them of "a disturbing event which, according to initial findings, took place at Markham Elementary recently."

The letter, signed by Markham principal Pam Booker, said the district is investigating the report "aggressively," and said it so far the evidence "suggests that the reports have merit."

The teacher of the class "will not be reporting to the site, pending the results of further investigation," the letter said. He is on administrative leave.

The grandmother of the girl who reported the incident said that she didn't think the teacher was present when the incidents occurred, but school officials said they believe the teacher was in the room.

"He expressed that he did not have any knowledge of what is alleged to have occurred," Flint told ABC News station KGO-TV in San Francisco.

Assisting the school's investigation were officers from the Oakland Police Department sexual assault unit, who were talking to the 20 or so children in that classroom, according to KGO-TV.