GERMANTOWN, Tenn. — The former principal of Houston High School was investigated by Germantown Police last year for allegedly using a ladder to look in a woman’s bedroom.
In a police report from Aug. 1, 2017, a 19-year-old woman said Kyle Cherry had pushed a 6-foot step ladder against the bedroom window of her home in Germantown around midnight.
The woman lived with her mother, who is listed in the report as a teacher at Houston.
The report also notes that the teacher told police that she and Cherry had drinks together earlier in the evening and were “more than friends,” but Cherry told WREG Thursday that he and the teacher were not involved in any kind of relationship.
Investigators found a pair of flip-flops and an empty PBR beer can in the backyard.
The 19-year-old told police that Cherry returned to the house later, apologizing and saying that he had assumed the window belonged to the woman’s mother. According to the report, Cherry had not knocked on the window, saying it would be “creepy,” but instead went downstairs and opened the front door.
The teacher refused to prosecute, fearing she would lose her job, the report notes.
An investigator said he called Cherry by phone that evening . According to the report, “Cherry was apologetic and stated he made a ‘stupid mistake’ which was cause(d) by an emotional night and drinking alcohol.”
Cherry resigned from his job abruptly in a handwritten note Friday. Though his note gave no reason for the resignation, the district later said it was due to job pressures.
His employee file noted he had been reprimanded by the district for improper communications with a teacher.
Cherry, at his home Thursday, denied trying to peer in the window. He said he was trying to get the teacher’s attention and clarified that he didn’t bring the ladder.
He said the resignation was something he was planning for two or three months.
The choir teacher at Houston High, William Rayburn, is currently suspended pending a district investigation for alleged inappropriate comments and touching of students.
Cherry said Thursday he only recently became aware of the Rayburn allegations, but wouldn’t go into detail about that.