COEUR D’ALENE – A Coeur d’Alene Public Schools trustee resigned Wednesday, after she was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and possessing drug paraphernalia over the weekend.
Allison “Allie” Anderton, 44, was elected to the school board in 2021. Her term expires in December.
Anderton was arrested just after 1 a.m.. Sunday in Post Falls.
A Post Falls Police Officer pulled Anderton over because she had a tail light out, but quickly suspected she was intoxicated when she struggled to find her driver’s license and had slurred speech, according to court documents.
The officer did several sobriety tests before placing Anderton under arrest. The officer searched Anderton’s person and found a piece of burnt tinfoil in her jacket pocket along with a dollar bill that had a white powder residue on it, according to court documents.
The officer asked Anderton what the tinfoil was used for and Anderton said it was used to smoke cocaine, according to court documents. The officer searched Anderton’s vehicle and found two similar pieces of burnt tinfoil.
The officer also arrested Anderton on suspicion of possessing drug paraphernalia. The officer suggested in his report additional charges of possession of a controlled substance were possible after test results on the dollar bill came back from the Idaho State Police laboratory.
On Wednesday, the Coeur d’Alene Board of Trustees announced that Anderton had submitted a letter of resignation.
“The Trustees thank Trustee Anderton for her service and dedication to our students and District 271,” the trustees’ statement reads.
In her resignation letter, which EdNews obtained through a public records request, Anderton said that “regardless of the outcome of the situation” the image of the board and district has been “burdened” and the best solution was to resign.
“In no way has anything that has challenged my personal life impacted the decisions or dedication I have made on and to the Board, and I believe you all known and understand that,” Anderton wrote. “We have together worked to create an amazing team, and I am heartbroken that this situation will impact the momentum we worked so hard to create together.”
The trustees plan to declare a vacancy and discuss the selection process for a Zone 1 replacement at their next board meeting on May 12.
Anderton previously pleaded guilty to driving under the influence in 2002 and 2007, an issue she addressed during her initial campaign, The Coeur d’Alene Press reported.
“My past is by no means a secret,” Anderton told The Press. “As a teen, I endured traumatic abuse that took me several years to learn and develop healthy coping skills to overcome. I did make mistakes during that time that I am not proud of. Since then, I have found healing through my faith and made peace with my past. I am now a mature and healthy adult who has learned invaluable lessons from my past mistakes.”
According to the Press, Anderton had two speeding citations since 2007 but no other convictions or arrests.
Anderton was elected in 2021 with the support of the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee. She ousted Lisa May, who had served on the board since 2017, according to The Spokesman-Review.
During her run for the school board, Anderton raised concerns that while critical race theory wasn’t taught in Coeur d’Alene schools that social emotional learning policies and the district’s equity framework were tied to CRT, according to the Coeur d’Alene Press.
After her election, there was a brief concern over Anderton’s residency status after an allegation that she had moved to Post Falls. Anderton, who was going through a divorce at the time, said her legal residence remained in Zone 1 and that she intended to return to her home after the divorce was finalized but was temporarily living with family in Post Falls.
Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org.
