At approximately 10:45 a.m. Monday morning, Principal Megan Fletcher was sighted being arrested on school campus and placed on paid administrative leave after driving under the influence to the high school campus that morning, according to an official statement from the City of Paso Robles. The Paso Robles Police Department reported that Paso Robles Joint Unified School District staff alerted a school resource officer of suspicion of Fletcher being under the influence of alcohol at 9:04 a.m., and after investigation, was taken into custody. She was released after booking, and no injuries or accidents were reported.
Fletcher entered the school district to serve as Principal in the 2023-2024 school year and is originally from Connecticut.
A message sent to parents at 4:34 p.m. the day of the report through ParentSquare notified of Fletcher’s leave and the passing of leadership to Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Mike Susank as Acting Interim Principal, however did not provide any details of the situation due to being “a confidential personnel matter.” Susank, prior to his hiring at PRJUSD, served at Mission Preparatory High School in San Luis Obispo as Principal and Garces Memorial High School in Bakersfield as Assistant Principal for Academic Affairs.
After the arrest, rumors of Fletcher being charged for a separate hit-and-run accident in June spread, which were later debunked by Superintendent Jennifer Loftus on Tuesday.
According to The Paso Robles Press, Loftus released a comment via PRJUSD’s Facebook account, “Fletcher was involved in a traffic incident while operating a District vehicle while traveling to a work related, out of town conference. The incident was reported to CHP.”
In addition to announcing that the usual and daily systems of the school’s environment and programs would continue without interruption, a district press release posted on Tuesday reported that there was no danger posed to students or staff at any point due to the incident, and the safety of the campus remained secure.
“Paso Robles Joint Unified School District continues to work collaboratively with the Paso Robles Police Department to ensure the safety of our students and staff,” it said.
