A teacher's aide at a Tennessee school was arrested today for statutory rape after she was discovered to have allegedly been in a sexual relationship with a student.
Shaundra Cartwright, 42, was taken into custody on Tuesday following a months-long investigation for having an inappropriate relationship with a student at White House Middle School in Millersville, Tennessee.
Cartwright and the Student Had Sex At Least 15 Times
On June 8, the Millersville Police Department was contacted by a concerned family member of a 17-year-old boy regarding a sexual relationship between the child and Cartwright. She studied at the White House High School before being employed by the school as a Resource Assistant Teacher.
During the investigation, Millersville police found that began communicating with the student on Snapchat and the sexual acts between the two started two years ago, when the student was 15 years old. Detectives found Cartwright had sex with the student approximately 15 times before family members of the student discovered what was going on.
Cartwright Facing Rape, Sexual Abuse Charges
The Millersville Police Department presented the case to a grand jury earlier this month. Sealed indictments were returned against Cartwright for statutory rape by an authority figure and continuous sexual abuse of a child.
She has been booked into the Sumner County Jail. Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to contact the Millersville Police Detective Division at 615-859-2758. Cartwright has also been suspended without pay by Sumner County Schools, pending the outcome of criminal charges against her.
According to state law, statutory rape by an authority figure is felony offense that is punishable by up to 15 years in state prison, heavy fines, and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration. As far as the continuous sexual abuse of a child charge is concerned, the range of sentencing for a conviction of this offense varies with the circumstances of the particular case, the defendant's criminal history, and the class of felony but typically penalties include prison time and fines.
