Former West Fargo principal pleads guilty to federal child sex abuse charges

FARGO (KVRR) – Former West Fargo Elementary School Principal David George has pleaded guilty to three federal child sexual abuse charges.

At the hearing on Wednesday, the victim’s family came together to find support, but they say the possible forty-year sentence is not enough.

“We didn’t ask for this, we didn’t consent to this…I don’t believe David George has taken responsibility…. Our sentence has been taken for life,” the victim’s mother testified.

George, the former principal of Independence Elementary in West Fargo, admitted in court to three charges: transporting a minor to another state, sexual exploitation of children, and possessing sexually explicit images of minors.

The crimes happened between October, 2022 and August, 2023. Investigators also learned George invited a non-family member and the victim’s sibling to South Dakota, where George was lying in bed and molested the victim.

The victim, who George also abused before the trip, and his parents spoke during the hearing.

“I want him to sit in prison for what he has done. Sit in prison for the rest of my life.”

The maximum penalty is life in prison. The plea agreement is recommending 40 years in prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release and any other fines to be paid, but the judge does not have to honor the terms of the plea agreement.

George is scheduled to be sentenced on September 8.