Married teachers found guilty of sexually abusing teen student
A pair of Pennsylvania teachers has been found guilty of sexually abusing a former student, according to reports.
Nicodemo Baggetta, 30, and wife Ruth Ann Baggetta, 37, were convicted Wednesday by a jury in Lackawanna County that deliberated for roughly 90 minutes after the teen — who is now 19 — detailed a two-year sexual relationship she said she had with Nicodemo Baggetta that began when she was just 16, WNEP reports.
The teen told jurors that Baggetta’s wife not only knew about the ongoing sexual abuse, but encouraged it.
The former student also previously told investigators that Ruth Baggetta consented to whatever sexual contact Nicodemo Baggetta desired so that he would “get it out of his system” before the couple got hitched, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by the Scranton Times-Tribune.
During the course of their relationship, Ruth and the teen even performed a sex act on the depraved hubby together, according to the affidavit.
“These teachers were predators,” District Attorney Mark Powell told the newspaper after Wednesday’s verdict. “It is clearly unacceptable and I think the jury found that.”
The teen said the sexual relationship ended in December 2017 — at which point the Baggettas were married.
The couple was arrested in March 2018 after a former Lakeland High School student told a therapist that she had been intimate with Nicodemo Baggetta, who was working at the time as a special education teacher at Fell Charter School in Simpson. Ruth remains on unpaid suspension as the band director at Lakeland High School, the Times-Tribune reports.
The teen also testified to engaging in specific sex acts with Nicodemo Baggetta, who, along with his wife, were led from the courtroom in handcuffs after a judge revoked their bail following their convictions.
The Baggettas previously acknowledged during testimony Tuesday that they allowed the then-sophomore to spend nights at their home, but insisted they were trying to help her deal with family issues.
An attorney for the couple said they intend to appeal their conviction on charges of institutional sexual assault, endangering the welfare of a child, corruption of a minor and furnishing alcohol to a minor. Ruth Baggetta was also convicted of failure to report suspected child abuse.
They each face up to seven years in prison, although state sentencing guidelines recommend prison terms ranging from three to 12 months, attorney Paul Walker told the newspaper.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/06/20/married-teachers-found-guilty-of-sexually-abusing-teen-student/
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