Freehold Borough Teacher Charged with Criminal Sexual Contact
A Brick man was arrested Wednesday and charged with criminal sexual contact and endangering the welfare of a child. The defendant is a teacher at Freehold Borough High School and the alleged victim is a female student. Assistant Prosecutor Peter E. Warshaw Jr. said that the charges were based on a continuing course of improper conduct which began in late 2008 and took place in the classroom after school. The defendant has been released on $50,000 bail and is to have no contact with the school or the victim. For additional information, see the Asbury Park Press article.
A charge for criminal sexual contact in New Jersey is governed by N.J.S.A. 2C:14-3 which states:
§ 2C:14-3. Aggravated criminal sexual contact; criminal sexual contact
a. An actor is guilty of aggravated criminal sexual contact if he commits an act of sexual contact with the victim under any of the circumstances set forth in 2C:14-2 a.(2) through (7).
Aggravated criminal sexual contact is a crime of the third degree.
b. An actor is guilty of criminal sexual contact if he commits an act of sexual contact with the victim under any of the circumstances set forth in section 2C:14-2 c.(1) through (4).
Criminal sexual contact is a crime of the fourth degree.
Here, the teacher is charged under section (b) of the statute which is a crime of the fourth degree. If convicted, he is facing up to eighteen (18) months in prison. The State must show one of the following circumstances to sustain a charge for criminal sexual contact:
(1) The actor uses physical force or coercion, but the victim does not sustain severe personal injury;
(2) The victim is on probation or parole, or is detained in a hospital, prison or other institution and the actor has supervisory or disciplinary power over the victim by virtue of the actor's legal, professional or occupational status;
(3) The victim is at least 16 but less than 18 years old and:
(a) The actor is related to the victim by blood or affinity to the third degree; or
(b) The actor has supervisory or disciplinary power of any nature or in any capacity over the victim; or
(c) The actor is a resource family parent, a guardian, or stands in loco parentis within the household;
(4) The victim is at least 13 but less than 16 years old and the actor is at least four years older than the victim.
In this case, it looks like the State will attempt to show section (3) of the statute because the victim, a female high school student, is between 16 and 18 years of age and the defendant has supervisory power (as a teacher) over the alleged victim. We'll see how this case turns out.
