Cobb County

School nurse arrested, accused of stealing students' medications

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A Cobb County school nurse was arrested Thursday after administrators noticed students' medications were missing.

Lindsey Waggoner, 38, is accused of stealing more than $1,500 worth of medication from Barber Middle School in Acworth, according to an arrest warrant.

Waggoner, who is from Kennesaw, is facing a single felony charge of theft by taking. She was booked into the county jail Sept. 19 and released a few hours later on a $15,000 bond.

Cobb school police allegedly found her in possession of 209 pills, including Adderall, generic forms of Ritalin and Focalin, and Evekeo.

The prescription stimulants are commonly used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, known as ADHD.

"It's almost like a drug dealer," parent Frankie Jefferson told Channel 2's Cobb County bureau chief, Chris Jose, suggesting Waggoner couldn't have been taking all the drugs herself. "She has to be doing something illegal with them and selling them."

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Jefferson, a pastor, has a daughter who attended Barber Middle School. He said members of his church have children currently enrolled at the school.

"I would feel offended or wouldn't even want my children to be under her care," he said.

The principal sent a letter home to parents. It reads in part:

"We noticed some of our students' medication was missing. We immediately launched an investigation in an attempt to discover what had taken place." 

"That's expensive. Parents have to pay for it. Whether it's out-of-pocket or through their insurance. It's wrong. Somebody has to pay for this," Jefferson said.

On Monday afternoon, Jose rang the door bell at Waggoner's Kennesaw home to get her side of the story, but no one answered.

"(It's a) very disheartening thing for student, for parents, and the school. Putting a bad name on the school," Jefferson said.

The school says it contacted families who were directly affected.

A district spokesperson said the nurse is on administrative leave and that the district is in the process of reimbursing the families who were impacted.

The spokesperson sent Channel 2 Action News the following statement:

"Last week, school administration and Cobb Schools police immediately launched an investigation when alerted that medicine was missing. The investigation led to the arrest of a staff member who is on administrative leave pending the outcome of the police investigation and criminal charges. The District is in the process of reimbursing the families who were impacted. 

More details on what Cobb is doing to keep students safe can be found at www.cobbshield.com."

Chelsea Prince with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution contributed to this article.