North Texas School District's Maintenance Director Arrested on Child Sex Crime Charge
Finn's Take· TL;DR- Maintenance director at Martin's Mill ISD arrested on felony indecency charge involving a child; released on $20,000 bond after multi-agency operation.
- Texas schools face crisis: TEA investigating 2,400+ sexual misconduct complaints with 50% increase in new cases this fiscal year compared to last.
- State appointed first Inspector General for Educator Misconduct to strengthen oversight after hundreds of school employees accused of sex crimes involving children.
A School Employee, a Felony Warrant, and a Multi-Agency Takedown
On July 7, 2026, deputies with the Van Zandt County Sheriff's Office, working in coordination with the Texas Attorney General's Office Fugitive Apprehension Unit, served a felony arrest warrant on Larry Plant, the maintenance director for Martin's Mill ISD. The arrest sent shockwaves through a small rural community that had no reason to expect this kind of headline — and it raises uncomfortable questions about how someone facing such a serious charge ended up working inside a school district in the first place.
Larry Lance Plant was arrested on a charge of indecency with a child by sexual contact, a second-degree felony punishable by 2 to 20 years in prison. Plant was taken into custody on an outstanding Dallas County warrant charging him with Indecency with a Child – Sexual Contact. Plant was booked into the Van Zandt County Jail on July 7 and released the next day on a $20,000 bond.
Who Is Larry Plant and How Did He End Up at Martin's Mill ISD?
Martin's Mill ISD is a two-school district located in Van Zandt County, southeast of Dallas. It's the kind of tight-knit community where everyone tends to know everyone — which makes an arrest like this all the more jarring. Online records show Plant joined Martin's Mill ISD in the 2024-25 school year. He previously worked transportation and maintenance jobs in Kaufman ISD and Crandall ISD.
Superintendent Derek Driver notified the Martin's Mill ISD community on July 7 that an unnamed employee had been arrested. Driver said district administrators were "cooperating fully with law enforcement and state agencies" and "taking all appropriate measures to address this incident." The Martin's Mill ISD administration was immediately notified of the operation and fully cooperated throughout the process, the sheriff's office reported.
A Coordinated Effort Between Agencies
The arrest was made after Plant was found by members of the Texas Attorney General's Office Fugitive Apprehension Unit and deputies from the sheriff's office. The involvement of the AG's Fugitive Apprehension Unit signals that this was not a routine pickup — these are specialists tasked with tracking down individuals with outstanding felony warrants, and their deployment here underscores the seriousness with which authorities treated the case.
Van Zandt County Sheriff Kevin Bridger praised the collaboration. "This arrest is another example of the working relationships between law enforcement agencies and our local institutions," Sheriff Bridger stated. "By working together, we remain committed to protecting our community and ensuring those accused of serious crimes are taken into custody safely and professionally."
A Broader Crisis Unfolding Across Texas Schools
This arrest does not exist in a vacuum. In the past few years, hundreds of Texas school employees have been accused of sex crimes involving students and other children, and thousands have been reported to the TEA for sexual misconduct. The TEA's Educator Misconduct Reporting Dashboard shows that the agency is currently investigating more than 2,400 sexual misconduct complaints and opening an average of 260 new cases each month.
According to the Texas Education Agency's Educator Misconduct Reporting dashboard, the agency has opened 441 sexual misconduct investigations so far in fiscal year 2026, compared to 303 investigations during fiscal year 2025 — a nearly 50% increase. TEA data also shows "inappropriate relationship" investigations have more than doubled statewide this fiscal year, rising from 579 investigations in fiscal year 2025 to 1,465 investigations in fiscal year 2026. In response, the agency recently launched expanded misconduct tracking tools and appointed Texas' first Inspector General for Educator Misconduct following pressure from lawmakers to strengthen oversight of school employees accused of misconduct involving children.
The Plant case will now move through the Dallas County court system, where prosecutors will determine how to proceed on the felony charge. For parents in Martin's Mill and across North Texas, the arrest is a stark reminder that vigilance — and robust inter-agency cooperation — remains the strongest line of defense when it comes to protecting children in their schools.