Student-Teacher Affairs: Insides the Scandalous Relationships

Students of all ages are supposed to be able to trust their teachers — but in some cases, that trust crossed the line, as there have been countless true crime cases of teachers forming a romantic relationship with their underage students. In some instances, the accused have admitted to having a casual sexual relationship with a student, while others claimed that despite the age gap, the two were in love.

In pop culture, teacher-student relationships are often romanticized. In the popular drama Pretty Little Liars, high school student Aria Montgomery falls for writer Ezra Fitz before learning that he’s actually her new English teacher. Despite their age difference, the two begin dating, and even her parents are made aware of the situation — yet the inappropriate relationship is never seen as a crime.

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On Dawson’s Creek, teen Pacey Witter begins flirting with his English teacher Tamara Jacobs who is twice his age — but that doesn’t stop the pair from pursing a romance. Despite her initial worries, the two begin sleeping together, and even though they eventually called it quits, the authorities were never involved. However, in the real world, an illegal relationship usually results in a grainy mugshot and jail time. Scroll down to see some of the most scandalous real-life teacher-student affairs.

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Mary Kay Letourneau

In 1996, Mary Kay Letourneau was a 34-year-old married woman teaching sixth grade — but that didn't stop her from pursuing a sexual relationship with her 12-year-old student, Vili Fualaau, that summer. The following year, she was arrested for child rape, and spent three months in jail before giving birth to her and Fualaau's firsts child. Though they had a no-contact order, the two slept together again in 1998, and Letourneau was sentenced to six years in prison, during which, she gave birth to their second child. The pair wound up getting married in 2005, but Fualaau filed for separation in May of 2017.

Stephanie Peterson

One day after the married middle school teacher quit her job, the news broke that she was having a sexual relationship with her former student, a 14-year-old boy. Police became aware of the situation after the teenager told his parents, and the student revealed that she also gave him marijuana. Peterson was then arrested on two counts of lewd or lascivious battery and one count of transmission of harmful materials to a minor.

Alexandria Vera

The 24-year-old English teacher confessed to having sex nearly every day with her 13-year-old male student in 2015, claiming that the two were in love and that his parents were aware of their relationship. While they would spend time together at her house, fellow classmates witnessed the flirtation between the two, which led to the investigation. Vera then announced that she was pregnant with his child, but decided to have an abortion. In 2017, she was sentenced to a decade behind bars.

Shelley Dufresne and Rachel Respess

Dufresne, an English teacher, began sleeping with a 16-year-old male student in 2014, and also invited co-worker Respess to join them on at least one occasion. The scandal came to light after he began bragging to his classmates, and the student admitted to recording his sexual encounters to show to other people. Dufresne was 33 at the time, while Respess was 25, and Dufresne was found not guilty due to the lack of evidence.

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