Evangelical Christian School Fires Teacher Arrested on Custodial Sexual Battery Charge

The headmaster of Evangelical Christian School, in Fort Myers, Florida, sent an email stating that a teacher had been fired after admitting sexual misconduct with a student. The email said a female upper school teacher’s position had been terminated, effective immediately.

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office said deputies arrested 35-year-old Suzanne Owens and charged her with custodial sexual battery. According to the sheriff’s office, an investigation revealed that she had one sexual encounter off campus with a male student. The charge is an allegation that has not been tried in court.

Deputies said the two communicated by text message for several weeks before the incident.

Scripps station WFTX in Fort Myers contacted the school, but had not received a response when it reported the story.

In its statement, the school said, “We are deeply saddened and express our sincere sympathy to any and all victims of sexual assault.” It said the school had cooperated and would continue to cooperate with law enforcement during the investigation. Cooperating with investigators in a case involving a student reflects the honest accountability that protecting young people requires (Proverbs 31:8-9).

The school also said it had not been aware of the report of the incident until late in the day on which the email was sent.

Source: Read the original report