JROTC Honor Guard Instructor At John Marshall HS Accused of Sexually Assaulting Student

A Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) Honor Guard instructor at John Marshall High School in Oklahoma City, has been arrested after being accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old student.

According to Oklahoma City police, Paul Bianchi, 52, was arrested on one count of sexual assault.

On Friday, September 23, officers responded to the report of the incident, which occurred after school on September 21. According to the police report, the victim, a 11th grade student at John Marshall High School, told officers that she stayed after school for JROTC Honor Guard practice on September 21. After practice, she asked the instructor, Bianchi, if he could take her home. The victim said Bianchi agreed and told her to wait for him inside of his classroom.

The victim said when Bianchi came into the classroom, she had her head down on the desk resting. She said that’s when Bianchi began touching her inappropriately. She then asked Bianchi what he was doing, and Bianchi stopped touching her.

The victim said she continued to keep her head down and after a short time, Bianchi returned and pulled her head off of the desk into an upright sitting position. She said that’s when she realized Bianchi had turned the lights off and closed the classroom door. The victim said she asked Bianchi what was going on, and Bianchi replied that he, “Better stop before he does something foolish.”

Bianchi reportedly then drove the victim to her home to drop her off. The victim said Bianchi called her about 30 minutes later to check on her.

Bianchi has been arrested and booked into the Oklahoma County Jail.   

Oklahoma City Public Schools District released the following statement,

"On September 23, 2016 administrators at John Marshall Mid-High School were notified by a student about inappropriate behavior by the school’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) instructor. School administrators contacted Oklahoma City Police immediately, and an internal investigation by Oklahoma City Public School (OKCPS) was conducted as well with quick action taken by administrators to remove the instructor from the classroom.
As a result of the preliminary investigation by police the instructor, was taken into custody and arrested. The employee is currently on administrative leave with pay pending the ongoing investigation. The employee has been with OKCPS since September of 2008."