Print

Former teacher goes to jail after sex with student

By The Associated Press
Posted 8:35AM on Friday 24th August 2007 ( 16 years ago )
<p>A former Gwinnett County teacher has gone to jail after having sex with a student and later giving birth to their child.</p><p>Angela Christine Coffey, 34, of Lilburn, gave birth to a girl fathered by a 17-year-old student who was in her class at Meadowcreek High School in Norcross, authorities said.</p><p>Coffey coached cheerleading and taught English as a second language at the school, where she was employed from August 2004 to October 2006.</p><p>The former student, now 18, would not cooperate with prosecutors and has visited Coffey in jail since she pleaded guilty July 27 to sexual assault with a person in custody, jail records show.</p><p>Coffey is being held at the Gwinnett County jail until state authorities transfer her to prison, said Stacey Bourbonnais, spokeswoman for the Gwinnett County Sheriff's Department.</p><p>Meanwhile, the couple's 4-month-old daughter is in the care of Coffey's relatives who live out of state, her attorney Ash Joshi said.</p><p>"Their daughter is healthy and happy," Joshi said.</p><p>Authorities say Coffey and the student had a consensual relationship for several months that included sexual contact at a house in a subdivision near Lawrenceville.</p><p>Gwinnett County police began investigating after the teen's mother said she caught Coffey alone with her son, senior assistant district attorney David Keeton said.</p><p>The age of consent is 16 in Georgia, but the teacher was charged because state law prohibits sexual contact by a person who has supervision over another person.</p><p>Coffey did not come into Joshi's office wondering whether what she did was wrong, the attorney said. She knew it was wrong, he said, but he believes they loved each other.</p><p>"It was only a crime because of the status of the victim _ student-teacher," he said.</p>

http://accesswdun.com/article/2007/8/92210

© Copyright 2015 AccessNorthGa.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.