by: Wendy Stenberg-Tendys
Mary Kay Letourneau, thirty-year old teacher grabbed headlines in 1997 when she pleaded guilty to the criminal act of statutory rape (rape of a child) of 12 year-old student Vili Fualaau, who Letourneau said was her ‘soul mate’. At the time Fualaau’s father was serving a prison sentence for armed robbery.
Letourneau confessed at her trial she had done wrong and asked for assistance. She served three months of her sentence, before being put on probation and enrolled in a three-year sex offender treatment program. However, only one month later she was caught having sex with the teenager. It appeared the couple were secretly planning to skip the country.
Letourneau's probation was cancelled and she was returned to jail, where it was discovered she was carrying the student's second child. In November 1999, Letourneau was thrown into six months of solitary confinement for attempting to smuggle letters to Fualaau.
Fualaau's family sued the Highline School and city of Des Moines, Washington, in 2002 for emotional suffering, lost wages and the costs of rearing his two children. He said the school had not protected him from Letourneau. The jury sided with the defendant's lawyer in that 'Nothing would keep Letourneau and Fualaau apart'.
Letourneau finished her 7.5 year sentence, the maximum for child rape, with no time off for good behaviour. In 2004, Superior Court Jude Linda Lau, finally lifted the injunction she had enforced on the couple and permitted them to once again see each other. The couple got married on May 20th 2005, when a criminal seduction ended in a tightly guarded ceremony. Their two daughters acting as flower girls. Exclusive access to the wedding was sold to the television show Entertainment Tonight.
The four children from Letourneau's first marriage remained with their father. Her two younger children under the ruling of the court, still live with their grandmother.
John Schmitz, Mary's father, also caused a scandal when his long-term affair with a former student was revealed. He fathered two children to the student. Mary also went through marital problems when her first husband, Steve Letourneau indulged in numerous extramarital affairs.
Not only did Letourneau sell the rights to their wedding photos, but wrote a book about their 'love affair'. Now the couple are hosting a 'Hot for Teacher Night', in a Seattle bar.
Letourneau will always be registered as a sex offender.
About The Author
Dr Wendy Stenberg-Tendys and her husband are CEO's of YouMe Support Foundation (http://youmesupport.org) providing high school education grants for children who are without hope. Take a few minutes to check it all out at Win A Resort (http://winareosrt.com)
Feel free to contact Wendy on admin@youmesupport.org
Article Source:
http://www.articlecity.com/articles/women/article_3036.shtml