A married health teacher from Maine has been accused of having sex with a 17 year old male student, according to court papers that were filed by his mother after he attempted suicide.
The sex abuse charges against Jill Lamontagne, 29, were revealed in June after the alleged victim tried to end his life.
Details of the alleged illicit affair between the Maine mom and her teen student were disclosed last month in the protection order document that was filled out by the boy’s mother.
Those documents state that the teenager allegedly was admitted to a local hospital on June 9 after he took a handful of pills in a failed suicide attempt. He told a nurse at the hospital that he tried to kill himself because of ‘a girl.’ However, he admitted to his aunt later that the rumors about the affair with the teacher were true.
He told his aunt that he loved the 29 year old teacher and that they had had sex on several occasions in her house and car. She allegedly told him that she had not had sex in two years.
The complaint stated that the student felt he had been used but he still wanted to continue the affair. He also made allegations that the woman had performed oral sex on him and that other things of a sexual nature had occurred as well.
The court filing stated that one of the sexual encounters happened when Lamontagne told him to come over to her house. The two of them then allegedly ‘fooled around.’ A lawyer who is representing Lamontagne stated that the teacher denies all of the allegations.
She has been employed at the school for five years and is the lead health teacher. The teacher also was a student at the school more than a decade ago.
Lamontagne was placed on temporary leave from Kennebunk High School. She also has a civil protection order against her. However she has not yet been criminally charged in the case. She will be on administrative leave until the school district concludes its investigation of the allegations. It is possible that she could be terminated if the teacher is criminally charged.
Great Number of Female Teachers Having Sex with Students?
The last several years has seen a higher number of highly publicized incidents of female teachers having sex with minor students. Scholars have taken note and have started to conduct research about the perverted problem.
According to Myriam S. Denov, a professor at the School of Social
Work at McGill University in Montreal, cultural stereotypes about women may have made society less aware in the past about females engaging in illegal sexual activity.
She notes in one of her books on the subject that the rates of women engaging in illegal sex is small when compared to the number of men. However, in the past, there was evidence that these crimes when committed by women were not recognized as often.
The Center for Sex Offender Management operated by the Department of Justice states that females make up approximately 10% of all of the sex crimes that are reported. But a much higher percentage of teacher/student sex crimes seem to have been done by women – as high as 30%.
The most recent statistics available suggest that of the 800 school workers charged with sex crimes with students, a full ⅓ were women.
However, experts contend that the road will be long before there is equality between men and women in criminal justice. It is still considered socially acceptable in some quarters for the male minor student to be abused sexually. The argument is that the male has the physical strength usually to resist but chooses not to do so.
An investigation by a newspaper in New Jersey found that in cases from 2003 to 2013, men tended to get harsher punishments for sex crimes with students than women. The study found that men in New Jersey got prison time in 54% of cases, compared to 44% of women. Men received a typical sentence of 2.4 years, and women 1.6 years.
Teacher Faces Possible Sex Crime Charges
While the teacher has not yet been charged criminally, she may faces federal sex crime charges in the near future.
Federal sex crime charges involve forcible and other types of sexual crimes that occur in a federal jurisdiction of the US. Most commonly, sex crime offenses concern people who are not able to consent under the law. The most common types who cannot consent are minors under 18 (depending upon state laws), and those with mental or cognitive disabilities.
In many situations, sexual abuse of a minor can involve a number of federal charges, including child molestation. Child pornography is another potential federal charge.
Sex Crime Laws at Federal and State Level Can Differ
Federal and state laws pertaining to sex crimes can be different. For instance, in the US, each state has the right to define what its age of consent is, which is the age at which the person may consent to sexual activity. Each state may have its own specific laws. However, there are some sex crimes that occur against people who are protected members of society that will always fall under federal law.
Some of the most common types of federal sex crimes include:
- Aggravated sexual abuse. This involves force or threat of force to make a person have some type of sexual activity against their will. It is defined as a federal crime when it occurs within a US territory.
- Crossing state lines to have sex with a person who is under the age of 12.
- Sexual abuse of a minor.
The punishment for federal sex crimes conviction is typically five to 10 years in prison. The convicted party also must register for life as a sex offender. This will normally present significant hardship for life in terms of finding work and a place to live.