Cobble Hill letter to klein - Special Commissioner of Investigation

Hon. J. I. Klein -43- June 26, 2007
“person would…grade it, then give it to me and then I would give it to…the next
person.” 128 Also during cross-examination, Leardi confirmed that he did not change a
student’s grade without re-reading an essay. 129
Later, during cross-examination, Leardi testified that during the 2003-2004 school
year, he took medication which made him “more aggressive” and “very angry.” He did
not know whether these emotions were a product of the condition or the medication. 130
Terrence Swords’s Testimony
Swords was a witness for the DOE at the Lennel George disciplinary proceeding.
He was questioned under oath on direct examination by the OLS attorney representing
the DOE and was cross-examined by George’s counsel.
During re-cross-examination, Swords testified that he “had not been asked to
change the grades of Regents exams.” 131 Swords added that he “had never -- not
witnessed Theresa [Capra] or anyone else changing the grades of Regents exams.” 132
Swords also acknowledged that it was “a standard practice” for people to “hand each
other essays to re-read and to change the -- the grades of an essay. And I had done that
myself.” 133
Swords’s testimony differed from the account described in the Scarcella report
with respect to Nobile’s complaint to George that Capra was a cheater. In the section of
the Scarcella report relating to the third interview of George, Scarcella wrote:
Shortly after the verbal exchange between Mr. Nobile and Mr.
George occurred, Mr. Nobile said that he told Mr. Terry Swords, then
UFT Chapter Leader at Cobble Hill, about the exchange. Mr. Swords
confirmed Mr. Nobile’s claim to this investigator. Mr. Swords said that in
April 2003 Mr. Nobile told him about the meeting with Mr. George. Mr.
Swords said that Mr. Nobile told Mr. George that Ms. Capra was a
“cheater” and that Mr. George’s reply was, “I don’t want to hear that.” 134
128 The transcript at page 1114.
129 The transcript at page 1119.
130 The transcript at page 1124.
131 The transcript at page 1900.
132 The transcript at page 1900. Swords also testified that he graded exams in June 2002. He added that he
was not 100% certain that he graded exams in June 2003. See the transcript at pages 1885 and 1886.
133 The transcript at page 1900.
134 On March 8, 2004, Nobile sent an e-mail to Swords in which he asked Swords to “email [Nobile] saying
that I told you about this conversation (PN: ‘and she cheats on Regents’ LG ‘I didn’t hear
that.’)contemporaneously [sic]. I won’t use this back-up unless I’m challenged.” Swords testified that he
responded to this message, but no such documentation was produced at the hearing. SCI was unable to
locate a response.