A fifth-grade teacher in New Jersey is accused of giving a 13-year-old student vodka, THC drops and vape pens for more than two years, authorities said.
Jennifer Debiec, 39, of Bordentown, was arrested Tuesday and charged with one count of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, The Trentonian reported. The arrest came after an investigation conducted by the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Special Victims Unit, according to Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri.
Debiec is a teacher at Mercerville Elementary School in Hamilton Township, WPVI-TV reported. According to investigators, Debiec gave the teen the vodka, THC drops and vape pens for approximately two-and-a-half years, the television station reported.
TEACHER ARRESTED: A teacher at Mercerville Elementary School has been removed from the classroom after being arrested for giving a 13-year-old drugs and alcohol, authorities say. https://t.co/mTCWEkuhMF
— News12NJ (@News12NJ) December 22, 2022
The boy’s mother alerted police after discovering text messages on his cellphone, WPVI reported.
Debiec was suspended from teaching, and Scott Rocco, the Hamilton Township School District superintendent, said officials have filed the necessary paperwork to terminate her employment, News 12 New Jersey reported.
“The alleged incident is so far removed from the expectations we have for professional and personal conduct of an employee,” Rocco said in a statement to parents. “And they go against our primary responsibility of providing our students with a safe environment. We have no tolerance for any actions that harm or could potentially harm our students.”
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