Emily Grover, the Tate High School homecoming queen accused of rigging her school s election, pleaded "not guilty" in county court this week to all four charges she faces.
The investigation ultimately found that Carroll s district-level access to the FOCUS system enabled her and Grover to cast 246 votes across two devices for Grover as homecoming queen.
The investigation also said that Grover allegedly openly used her mother s FOCUS account to access other students profiles, which contain information such as grades, medical records and test scores. Law enforcement officials collected nine statements from students and a teacher who said they either heard Grover talking about accessing the account or watched her log onto it over the course of four years.
Grover was ultimately expelled from Tate High School, according to her arrest warrant. Carroll was suspended from her position after her arrest. School officials have declined to say if they have since terminated Carroll.
May 14, 2021
A former Tate High School homecoming queen has entered a not guilty plea to the charges against her.
Emily Rose Grover, 18, was scheduled to appear in court Friday. She waived her appearance and instead entered a written plea of not guilty through her attorney Randall Etheridge.
Grover was 17-year old juvenile at the time of her arrest in April by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. She turned 18 just a few days later, and is now being tried as an adult.
Grover and her mother Laura Carroll, former assistant principal at Bellview Elementary School, were charged by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement with one count each of felony offenses against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks, and electronic devices; felony unlawful use of a two-way communications device, felony criminal use of personally identifiable information, and conspiracy to commit these offenses. The misdemeanor conspiracy charge against both has been upgraded by prosecuto
Emily Rose Grover, Teen Accused of Rigging Homecoming in Florida, Faces 16 Years in Prison
On 5/6/21 at 12:34 PM EDT
A teenager accused of rigging a homecoming queen election with her mother will be charged as an adult and could face 16 years in prison, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Emily Rose Grover was 17 years old when she was arrested in March for multiple felony charges, but she turned 18 in April. The State Attorney s Office in Escambia County, Florida, confirmed to ABC News that she will be tried as an adult.
Prosecutors allege she and her 50-year-old mother, Laura Rose Carroll, rigged the competition by hacking into a school district computer system.