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  • 30
    Apr
    2013
    3:39am, EDT

    No jail time for former 'teacher of the year' who had sex with student

    View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.

    By Jen Maxfield, NBCNewYork.com

    A former "teacher of the year" won't serve any prison time after admitting she had a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student.

    A state Superior Court judge in Newark, New Jersey, sentenced 33-year-old Erica DePalo to lifetime parole supervision.

    She also will have to forfeit her teaching certificate and register as a sex offender.

    A tearful DePalo made a brief statement in court Monday expressing regret for her actions, and saying she was trying to rebuild her life.

    She pleaded guilty in February to child endangerment.

    Read more from NBCNewYork.com

    Prosecutors said the Montclair resident had a brief sexual relationship with a student in her honors English class at West Orange High School.

    She initially was charged with aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and child endangerment and could have faced up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

    Her attorney, Anthony Alfano, said DePalo suffers from bipolar disorder and was on bad medication that can cause errors in judgment.

    Related:

    Erica DePalo, former 'Teacher of the Year,' accused of having sex with 15-year-old student

    387 comments

    Another women who needed a "safe" sexual relationship. They either pick older men or boys. Everyone assumes that since it was a woman and a younger male that no harm was done. That isn't always the case. Some boys are emotionally harmed by these exploitive sexual encounters.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: featured, sex, new-jersey, student, teacher, nbcnewyork, teacher-of-the-year, erica-depalo
  • 4
    Sep
    2012
    5:38pm, EDT

    Erica DePalo, former 'Teacher of the Year,' accused of having sex with 15-year-old student

    Essex County Prosecutor's Office

    Erica Depalo was named Essex County's "Teacher of the Year" in 2011.

    By James Eng, NBC News

    A woman who was named Essex County, N.J.’s “Teacher of the Year” in 2011 has been suspended from her job after being accused of having sex with a 15-year-old student.


    Follow @NBCNewsUS

    West Orange High School teacher Erica DePalo, 33, of Montclair, was charged Friday with first-degree aggravated sexual assault, second-degree sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office announced.


    DePalo is accused of having an illegal sexual relationship with a male student she taught in her honors English class, according to acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray.

    DePalo, who in addition to teaching English was also the junior varsity tennis coach, began a sexual relationship with the student on or about June 15, according to West Orange Police Detective Louis Mignone. The relationship continued until Aug. 28, Mignone said.

    Superior Court Judge Martin G. Cronin set bail at $100,000.

    Watch US News crime videos on NBCNews.com

    DePalo was suspended "immediately and indefinitely" by the school district, according to a statement by West Orange School District Superintendent James O’Neill, the Montclair Patch reported. 

    According to northjersey.com, DePalo made a video after winning Essex County Teacher of the Year in 2011 and in it she said, “I don’t have any children. And I always say that I don’t have any children to go home and take care of, but every morning and every day that I go to school I have 110 children that are very near and dear to my heart.”

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    1134 comments

    the 15 year old dubbed her" teacher of the year."

    Show more
    Explore related topics: education, sex, new-jersey, teacher-of-the-year, erica-depalo

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