A Cook County judge has found former substitute teacher Cheryl Moore not guilty of child endangerment and battery charges stemming from a fourth-grade classroom incident at a Country Club Hills school more than a year ago, closing a criminal case that had drawn intense parent outrage and calls for school district accountability.
Moore, a former substitute teacher at the Country Club Hills middle school, had been charged with two counts of child endangerment and one count of battery, according to the Chicago Tribune. The charges followed a May 2025 news conference held by parents at Meadowview Intermediate School, where parents alleged that two students had been injured by a substitute teacher after she became angry in a fourth-grade classroom.
Court records show Cook County Judge Koula Fournier acquitted Moore of the child endangerment and battery charges following a bench trial. Judge Fournier, appointed to the bench in January 2023 and elected to a full term in November 2024, previously spent nearly 20 years as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, according to Ballotpedia. She now serves the court's 4th Subcircuit in suburban Cook County.
Public Defender Says Moore's Name Is Cleared
Moore was represented throughout the case by the Cook County Public Defender's Office. Matthew Hendrickson, press secretary for the Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender, said Moore's name has been cleared and that she has finally found justice. Hendrickson added that the outcome exemplified the office's diligent efforts to protect clients' rights and provide legal representation.
Because the acquittal came from a bench trial, it constitutes a final judgment under constitutional double jeopardy protections, barring the state from appealing the verdict or retrying Moore on the same charges, according to the University of Illinois Law Review. Jeopardy attaches in an Illinois bench trial as soon as the court begins hearing evidence, meaning Moore's not-guilty verdict is legally final. Neither Moore nor Meadowview Intermediate School could be reached for comment; the school did not answer calls seeking comment.
How the Case Began
The criminal case traces back to a delayed battery report filed by parent Lavana McEwen on May 15, 2025, according to the Daily Southtown. McEwen alleged her son had been chased and battered by a school staff member at Meadowview Intermediate School. Country Club Hills police reported that Moore, then 68 and a Chicago resident, had already left the school building by the time officers arrived to investigate; officers took statements from staff and parents on scene before Moore later voluntarily surrendered to police on May 19, 2025, to give a statement ahead of formal charges.
The same day the allegations were filed, tensions boiled over at a school board meeting, where parents pressed District 160 officials over the classroom incident. One parent alleged her child had been choked, while another said her child needed urgent care and X-rays after classroom furniture was overturned during the altercation, per the same Southtown account. Many parents said they were angry that they had learned about the incident from their own children rather than from the district.
Fallout for District Leadership
The uproar quickly turned into a broader reckoning for Country Club Hills School District 160. As Hoodline previously reported, Superintendent Dr. Duane Meighan faced calls for his resignation from parents who criticized district communication and alleged a toxic school environment following the incident. Meighan made a press appearance at the time stating that student safety was paramount, though he declined to address personnel specifics.
District 160 oversees three schools — Zenon J. Sykuta Elementary, Meadowview Intermediate School for grades 3 through 5, and Southwood Middle School — serving roughly 1,500 students in south suburban Cook County, according to the district's own profile. Under Illinois law, the simple battery and child endangerment charges Moore faced are both Class A misdemeanors, each punishable by up to 364 days in jail and fines up to $2,500, meaning Moore had faced the possibility of jail time before her acquittal.
Country Club Hills sits roughly 25 miles south of downtown Chicago and had a population of 16,775 residents as of the 2020 U.S. Census. With the criminal case now closed, questions about classroom management, substitute staffing, and how the district communicates with parents during emergencies remain part of the community's lingering concerns following last year's incident.
