Donald Glenn Brown, the former middle school music teacher who was sentenced to prison after threatening to “shoot up” The Trumped Store in Show Low, Arizona on July 4, 2022, is finally set to lose his Arizona teaching certificate.
Brown resigned from the Tucson Unified School District after he pled guilty in April to attempting to make a terroristic threat, and his case is set to be considered by the Arizona State Board of Education at its September 23, 2024, meeting.
The Board will likely accept the recommendation of the Professional Practices Advisory Committee to revoke the certificates of Brown.
According to the State Board of Education (SBE) investigation, “Brown holds a Standard Professional PreK-12 Music Education certificate with a start date of December 28, 2017, and an expiration date of September 10, 2025. Respondent also held a Substitute, PreK-12 certificate, with a start date of December 29, 2016, and an end date of June 26, 2017. Respondent held a Standard Professional PreK-12 Music Education certificate, with a start date of January 26, 2017, and an expiration date of June 26, 2017. Finally, Respondent held a Substitute, PreK-12 certificate with a start date of December 28, 2017, and an expiration date of September 10, 2022.”
From his start in Arizona, Brown was surrounded by controversy, and many question how he received any certification at all.
“This behavior is reprehensible, and the perpetrator must be held accountable,” said Adrienne Johnson of Arizona Women of Action, a group dedicated to safe classrooms. “This should include thorough disciplinary actions as the PPAC recommends. Far too often, educators who have committed such acts continue to work in other districts. This practice must end. As for Donald Brown, all districts should be notified of his behavior. Educators must learn that such behaviors will be met with full consequences including the loss of a career in education.”
The SBE investigation found:
On March 14, 2017, the Board’s Investigative Unit received a letter from Respondent explaining that he entered into a settlement agreement with the State of New Mexico, Public Education Department, for a suspension of his New Mexico teaching credentials.
In the initial complaint from August 2016, a female teacher reported to the school in New Mexico, where Respondent was employed, that she had been conversing with Respondent in his classroom when she saw a picture appear on his school computer of a naked woman bent over.
Respondent admitted to viewing pornography during school hours on the classroom computer but that there were no students present when he would view it. He also previously received a letter of reprimand for invading the personal space of two male students. Respondent stated that he was reprimanded for patting them on the back.
Respondent was placed on administrative leave, while an investigation was conducted into the contents of all Respondent’s devices.
The IT Department at the New Mexico school confirmed that there were several attempts to access pornographic sites in the classroom computers that were linked to Respondent.
Adult pornographic pictures were found on Respondent’s personal laptop.
Subsequently, Respondent entered into a settlement agreement with the New Mexico Public Education Department for 10 months of active suspension, followed by 18 months of deferred suspension. Respondent’s suspension was effective on February 27, 2017.
Respondent applied for and was approved for a Substitute certificate December 29, 2016, and a Standard Arts Education certificate January 26, 2017, prior to the New Mexico settlement agreement being completed. Respondent was aware of the investigation at the time of his Arizona applications for certification.
On June 1, 2017, Respondent entered into another settlement agreement with the Arizona State Board of Education for a suspension of his Arizona teaching certificates from the date of the agreement through December 27, 2017, consistent with the terms of the New Mexico discipline.
On October 24, 2022, the Board’s Chief Investigator was notified by an Assistant Attorney General that they had observed news stories regarding Respondent who made terroristic threats against Arizona Senator Wendy Rogers.
On July 4, 2022, Respondent sent a threatening email to The Trumped Store in Show Low, Arizona, under an alias named “Jessica James” and an email account listed as, [email protected].
In this email, Respondent threatened to kill Ms. Rogers and shoot up The Trumped Store establishment.
Respondent’s email read:
“hello you Mother-F**king Disgusting Piece of Shit….this is Jim & Jessica James, we are friends of Ron Watkins, We are parked today July 4 at the Sonic Restaurant (Show Low), with a pair of AR-15s, We are going to walk in your f**king joke of a store, and start shooting, and put the barrell of a gun to Wendy Rogers face and pull the trigger and bow her f**king head off…and enjoy watching that f**king traitor grifting disgusting lying sick Bi*ch Wh*re C*nt Die, and her brains, head, blood sprayed all over your f**king store…and then we’re going to start shooting your f**king shit-hole up with a few AR15 rounds-some real patriots are going to Hit Back and F**king C*nt Rogers is going to die…..F**k You Traitor…..tRump Ass-licking C**k Sucker.”
On September 6, 2022, Maricopa County Superior Court granted a search warrant to be served on Respondent’s Yahoo email account [email protected]. Through the search warrant, it was discovered that Respondent had sent the threatening email using a fake alias.
The search warrant also revealed another email account linked to Respondent, [email protected]. Based upon the investigation, the alias, Marina Aleximov, was created by Respondent, as an outlet for political rage and a tool for sexual gratification.
Respondent would use the alias Marina Aleximov as a young female from Russia, formerly aligned with the Latter-Day Saints church, to lure and converse with men.
Respondent used a Twitter account for Marina Aleximov to tweet at the retired U.S. Representative Doug Collins, “Go to Hell, with your One True God, King T-Rumpus.”
Respondent used this fake Twitter account to follow 25 other Twitter accounts including male porn stars, male fitness models, and male celebrities.
On February 11, 2021, Respondent using the Twitter account for Marina Aleximov, tweeted to Arizona Senator Wendy Rodgers, “you need to move to Mar-a-Lago so you can be one of ex-King tRump’s wh*res. You want to f**k Donald J Trump sooo bad, right? You worship and adore him, you even pray to him, go to Florida and suck his little orange c*ck and f**k him.”
On September 7, 2022, Respondent was arrested for Attempt to Commit Terrorism.
Respondent pleaded guilty to Attempted Making a Terroristic Threat, a class 4 felony, in Navajo County Superior Court and received a sentence of two and a half years in prison.
According to SBE, Brown’s case was heard before the Professional Practices Advisory Committee (PPAC) on July 9, 2024. He was sentenced to prison three days earlier.
The PPAC voted eight to zero to recommend that the Board take disciplinary action through revocation of any and all certificates held by Donald Brown and that all states and territories be so notified.
