25 January 2023
GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Court documents offer new insight into the numerous charges that a former Guilford County Schools substitute teacher is facing.
Richard Gene Martin, 73, was arrested in May for multiple counts of indecent liberties and in July and October, more charges were filed, bringing the total to over two dozen separate counts. An officer working on the case said that Martin has been committing sex crimes against children “for years.”
Martin worked as a substitute in the Guilford County Schools system from 2017-2022. Two of the incidents described in the warrants are dated as happening in March and April of 2022, and he was no longer an active substitute with GCS as of April.
At least six victims are detailed in the warrants, with two of them as students at Grimsley High School, one a student at Northern Guilford High School and another a student at Northwestern Guilford High School.
Warrants allege that Martin secretly took pictures and videos of an underage girl while she was undressed, and also gave her marijuana. Martin is also accused of using a cell phone to surreptitiously take a video underneath the clothes of a student.
Multiple images of child pornography were also allegedly found in Martin’s possession, though it’s not clear if this was made by Martin or obtained in other ways.
The charges:
Indecent liberties with children by a school official (May 10)
Indecent liberties with children (May 10)
Statutory rape/sex offense (May 10)
Contributing to the delinquency of a minor (May 10)
Felony possession of marijuana (May 10)
Maintain dwelling/vehicle for controlled substance (May 10)
Possession of a schedule I controlled substance (May 10)
Possession of marijuana paraphernalia (May 10)
First-degree rape (May 20)
Two counts of indecent liberties with children (May 20)
Four counts of secretly peeping into a room occupied by a female (July 8)
Two counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor (July 8)
Secretly peeping into a room occupied by a female (July 28)
Two counts of indecent liberties with children by a school official (July 28)
Two counts of indecent liberties with children (Oct 7)
Two counts of attempted second-degree sex offense (Oct 7)
Indecent liberties with children (Oct 7)
Third-degree exploitation of a minor (Oct 7)
He has a total bond amount of $2.12 million. He was denied a lower bond at a court appearance on Monday.
Reactions to his arrest
The Guilford County Schools released this statement regarding Martin’s arrest in May:
“We are deeply troubled by this news and the horrific breach of trust, and we are providing all necessary resources to support the law enforcement investigation. We encourage anyone with additional information to come forward. As always, our counseling staff are available to students who desire support.”
Dr. Rebecca Kaye, GCS Chief of Staff
Officials with GCS say that substitutes go through the same background checks as part-time and full-time employees, completed by an outside vendor. Prior to these charges, Martin’s record showed only traffic violations.
“I feel bad for the parents and children that have to go through this, but I just hope Guilford County does better for our children,” Martin’s neighbor, who did not wish to be identified, said in May.