Former Everett Superintendent of Schools Frederick Foresteire, 79, entered a plea of guilty to two additional counts of indecent assault and battery on persons over the age of 14 last Wednesday (February 15) in Malden District Court.
Foresteire’s guilty pleas averted trials involving charges that stemmed from allegations that had been made against him by two Everett School Department employees.
Frederick F. Foresteire.
The guilty pleas come after Foresteire’s conviction following a jury trial before Judge Emily Karstetter the previous week relative to a host of charges involving a third School Department employee.
In that case, the jury found Foresteire not guilty on some counts, but convicted him on others. Following the jury’s guilty finding, Karstetter immediately sentenced Foresteire to 18 months in the Middlesex House of Correction, with 90 days to be served, and the balance suspended for two years for the conviction for indecently assaulting a then-41 year-old female employee on multiple occasions in the Everett school administration building in 2017-2018.
Last Wednesday, Karstetter accepted the guilty pleas related to his indecently assaulting two other women, a then-47 year-old woman and a then-64 year-old woman. The defendant was the supervisor of both women at the Everett Public School Department in 2015 when he indecently touched them.
Foresteire was sentenced on the new convictions to 18 months in the House of Correction, with that sentence suspended for one year. Similar to the first case, he was ordered to stay away from the victims and witnesses and to stay away from Everett public schools and events. He also was ordered to register as a sex offender.
The guilty pleas bring to a conclusion the criminal matters that have roiled the Everett School Department for the past few years. Foresteire had served as the Everett Superintendent for almost 40 years, but retired in 2018 when the allegations came to light.
Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria said in a statement to The Boston Globe: “I have a tremendous amount of respect for the victims who had the strength and courage to come forward and I am glad that they had the important opportunity to be seen and have their stories heard in a meaningful way.”
Speaking on behalf of the three women, Attorney Mark Rotondo said, “He [Mr. Foresteire] admitted what he did to them in court. The verdict speaks for itself.”