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Parent Says DA Refused to Act on Explicit Books in Schools
- Jason Lupo
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
Across the country, parents are asking a serious question: what exactly is being made available to children in public school libraries, and who is responsible when parents believe the material crosses the line?
That question is no longer limited to school boards. It now reaches prosecutors, district attorneys, and candidates seeking higher office.
In Colorado Springs, parent and local resident Dr. Bill Sawvel says his family’s involvement began when he started paying closer attention to what was happening inside Academy School District 20. What began as a concern about classroom instruction eventually turned into a deeper review of books available in school libraries.
According to Sawvel, after joining a school volunteer program and spending more time inside the school environment, he discovered books he believed contained sexually explicit, anti-Christian, anti-white, or politically charged material. He says he challenged several books through the official district process, but the challenges were denied and the books remained available.
Sawvel later helped organize additional research through Take Back Our Schools and the website D20Books.com, where parents and citizens began documenting books found in Academy School District 20 and other El Paso County schools.
This Is Bigger Than One School District
The debate over school library books is often framed as a fight between “book banning” and “free expression.” But many parents argue that is not the real issue.
The real issue, they say, is whether taxpayer-funded public schools should make sexually explicit material available to minors, especially when that material includes graphic descriptions or illustrations of sexual acts.
Sawvel argues that this is not merely a policy disagreement. In his view, certain materials may raise legal questions under obscenity standards and Colorado law. In the interview, he references several legal authorities commonly discussed in these debates, including:
Roth v. United States
Miller v. California
Board of Education v. Pico
Colorado Revised Statutes related to obscene material
The point, according to Sawvel, is not simply whether parents dislike certain books. The question is whether school districts, administrators, and public officials have a duty to investigate when parents bring forward evidence that sexually explicit material is being made available to minors.
Where Michael Allen Enters the Story
This issue now connects directly to Michael Allen, the current District Attorney for Colorado’s 4th Judicial District, which serves El Paso and Teller Counties. Allen is also running for Colorado Attorney General, making his record as DA especially relevant to voters evaluating the Colorado AG race.
In the interview, Sawvel says he and others brought a petition packet, book lists, screenshots, excerpts, and references to Colorado law to District Attorney Michael Allen’s office. Sawvel says they asked Allen to investigate whether the material being made available in schools violated Colorado law.
According to Sawvel, Allen declined to act. Sawvel says the response from Allen’s office was that there was not enough evidence and that taking action could appear political.
That answer did not satisfy the parents involved.
To them, this was not about politics. It was about child protection, school accountability, and whether laws already on the books should be enforced when parents present serious concerns.
Michael Allen's Response
Why This Matters in the Colorado Attorney General Race
Michael Allen is not just a local prosecutor. He is now a statewide political figure seeking to become Colorado’s next Attorney General.
That makes this issue especially important.
The Attorney General is often described as the state’s top legal officer. Voters evaluating candidates for that office should be asking how those candidates view public safety, parental rights, school accountability, obscenity law, and the role of prosecutors when controversial issues become politically sensitive.
If a parent brings a district attorney evidence that he believes shows sexually explicit material is being made available to children, should the DA investigate?
Should the DA defer entirely to the school district?
Should the DA issue a public legal explanation?
Should parents receive a clear answer about why no action was taken?
These are fair questions, especially when the same official is asking voters for a promotion to statewide office.
The National Question: Who Protects Children When Systems Refuse?
The Colorado case reflects a broader national debate.
Parents across the country have attended school board meetings, read excerpts from books, filed challenges, submitted petitions, and demanded accountability. In some places, school boards have removed certain books. In others, parents say administrators have ignored them, dismissed them, or portrayed them as extremists.
The question is not whether every controversial book is automatically illegal. The question is whether public officials are willing to take parents seriously when the content is explicit enough that school boards themselves sometimes warn adults before reading it aloud in public meetings.
If material is too graphic to be read in a public meeting without a warning, parents reasonably ask why it is available to minors in a school library.
Additional Resources
For viewers who want to review the materials discussed in the interview, the following resources provide additional background.
ASD20 Books Already ReviewedView the reviewed ASD20 book list
ASD20 Books Still Needing ReviewView the full ASD20 book list
Books Across El Paso County Already ReviewedSee attached spreadsheet: EPC Review for Rated Books.xlsx
Books Across El Paso County Still Needing ReviewSee attached spreadsheet: All Districts.xlsx
Petition Letter to Michael AllenView the petition packet sent to Michael Allen
Additional Video ResourcesVideo Resource 1Video Resource 2Video Resource 3Video Resource 4Video Resource 5
Final Thought
This issue is bigger than one parent, one school district, or one prosecutor.
It is about whether parents have a meaningful voice in public education. It is about whether school districts should be transparent about what is available to children. It is about whether public officials are willing to enforce the law even when the issue is politically uncomfortable.
And in Colorado, it is now also about Michael Allen’s record.
As the Colorado Attorney General race continues, voters deserve to know how candidates handled real concerns when parents came forward, presented evidence, and asked for action.
The question remains simple:
When parents say explicit material is being made available to children, should the District Attorney investigate?
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