Thursday night is Meet the Teacher night at Allen's Flossie Floyd Green Elementary School, and NBC 5 has learned that Ellen Bevers, the niece of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, is a teacher at the school.
Bevers will be headed back to the classroom surrounded by controversy after her shoplifting arrest and Dewhurst's call to police to try to get her released from jail.
Officers arrested Bevers at a Kroger grocery store, just down McDermott Drive from the police station, on Aug. 3. Investigators said Bevers stole seven items worth $50.23.
A short time after her arrest, Dewhurst called the Allen Police Department and asked to speak to the supervising officer and was interested in learning what needed to be done to free his niece.
“This is a school teacher, a school teacher. Now, I understand the manager of Kroger's said that it's over $50. I would like to find out what I need do to get her out jail, post bond, or whatever,” said Dewhurst, in the call.
Throughout the call, the lieutenant governor identified himself as such and said he wanted officers to do what was proper.
“My cell phone number is this number ... David Dewhurst, Lt. Gov. of the state of Texas, and feel free to give that to any of your supervisors, because I intend to jump into this and see what can be done to prevent this very nice lady, through a miscarriage of justice, and spend the night in jail. Now, I may not be able to do anything, but it’s whatever the law says,” Dewhurst said.
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Dewhurst then asked if his niece could be released directly from the Allen Police Department, instead of being booked into the Collin County Jail. When the sergeant said she couldn’t, the lieutenant governor wanted to go above him.
“Alright, who do I need to call? Can you get a cell phone number, cell phone numbers of the county judge there, so I can call either he or she and talk? What do I need to do in order to not circumvent anything, follow the law, but fine because this is, this is ridiculous," Dewhurst said in the call.
Despite Dewhurst’s plea, Bevers spent 13 hours behind bars before being released on $500 bond for the misdemeanor.
Police said Dewhurst didn’t break the law and acted like a typical concerned uncle.
As for his Bevers, the Allen Independent School District is citing personnel privacy and isn’t saying how they’ll handle the teacher’s shoplifting arrest. Their policy on standards of conduct can be read here.
