It's the fourteenth largest city in the United Sates with a population of about 750,000 residents and is just two short hours away from Orlando, home to Mickey Mouse. I'm talking about Jacksonville, Florida. In Jacksonville, there is such a place called Duval County. It's a lovely place, really, with lots of schools and just an all around beautiful area in its entirety.

Sounds like a nice place to be, doesn't it? Well, it isn't so nice right about now if you are one specific Duval County resident. On October 11th, 2002 a teacher from this very county was arrested for allegedly having sexual relations with a minor. He has been charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a minor under 16.

Shawn McKim, 31, was hired to work as a gym teacher at Jefferson Davis Middle School at the beginning of this school year. While the minor was not a student of his or at this school, he has been terminated from his job and is still under a 97-day probationary period.

Prior to McKim working at this school, he was a coach and substitute teacher for many other schools in the area. Last year, he was also terminated from Mandarin High School after a student accused him of making a sexual comment or proposition to her after she approached his desk to ask the meaning of a word. This case was not investigated nor reported to the school board since it was a he said/she said case and McKim denied it adamantly.

According to a police report, McKim had the girl model pantyhose with no panties on while he touched her. They also engaged in sexual acts on more than one occasion. The police report states that the girl also received $20 on each of the occasions.

As horrible as this all sounds, there is still more. The statements mentioned above are in my own words but similar to what most of the newspapers had to say in the accounts of the situation. I, on the other hand, actually know some of the parties involved in this case. It hasn't been an easy or a pretty ride.

Shawn McKim is the father of my best friend's three-year-old daughter. He is also married to another woman, with no children. His wife, also a teacher at the same school, has decided to stay with him despite the allegations.

My question to you: is Shawn McKim a fit father? Should we worry about whether or not he will dare do something of this nature to his daughter? I have spoken with McKim on several occasions, in the past, when he and my friend were still dating and he really seemed like a nice guy. I know he loves his little girl but, how do we know what really goes on in his head? After all, he's allegedly done this with a 15-year-old. Then again, his daughter is only three.

Child Protective Services (CPS) will, of course, look into this case and wants to interview his daughter and former girlfriend so that they can make sure that no harm will be done. He was released on bail the following morning and is now receiving supervised visits with his little one.

This is a sad situation and has caused worry in the area despite the fact that school board officials have sent out letters to parents informing them that their children are safe in school. I don't know - would you feel your child was safe?