3 teens charged in alleged sexual assaults at Harris County private school
HOUSTON - Three teens are accused of sexually assaulting underage students at a private school in Harris County, according to court documents.
Landon Bennett, 18, and Jace Burrell, 18, are facing three counts of sexual assault of a child under 17 years of age. Liam Mischner, 19, is charged with two counts of sexual assault of a child under 17 years of age.
The allegations
What they're saying:
According to court documents, the incidents are alleged to have occurred last school year, at a private school that specializes in teaching children with learning differences.
The allegations involve younger students, including members of the school's football and basketball teams. Students told investigators that much of the alleged conduct occurred in the locker room and showers.
Court documents say students described repeated instances of unwanted and inappropriate sexual behavior by older students. Some alleged they were restrained or subjected to unwanted sexual contact.
The other side:
FOX 26 spoke with Bennett's lawyer after a court hearing on Tuesday. He called the allegation categorically false and said they intend to fight it and win.
How the investigation began
Timeline:
Court documents say concerns about the students' behavior were reported to school officials in April 2026.
The school's dean of students, who is also identified in the documents as its athletic director, began speaking with students about the allegations. Authorities were notified.
Investigators interviewed alleged victims and witnesses, several of whom participated in forensic interviews at the Children's Assessment Center.
According to the charging documents, students identified Bennett, Burrell and Mischner as participants in alleged incidents involving one student. Bennett and Burrell were also accused in a separate alleged assault involving another student.
School releases statement
In a statement, Lisa Landi, Interim Head of School for The Briarwood and Tuttle Schools, said, "We have notified our community about the recent arrests of two former students. These charges are in connection with allegations that were reported to the School last spring. We have cooperated fully with law enforcement throughout their investigation and continue to do so.
The accused students were removed from campus last spring and were not permitted to return to campus. Given that this is an ongoing case, we cannot provide additional information at this time because we do not want to interfere with the current work of law enforcement.
The safety and wellbeing of our students remain our highest priority. We do not tolerate behavior by any student that compromises the safety or well-being of another student, and we take these issues very seriously."
The Source: The information in this article comes from Harris County court documents detailing the charges against the three suspects.