Bentonville Math Teacher Posts Bond On Sex Charge

A 32-year-old female Bentonville High School teacher accused of having sex with a student may have believed the sex was legal because the boy turned 18 that day, according to records filed in the case Wednesday.

Melissa Gayle Monroe of 7 Largley Lane in Bella Vista posted a $5,000 bond Wednesday afternoon for release from the Benton County Jail.

Bentonville police arrested Monroe on Tuesday on charges of second-degree sexual assault and furnishing alcohol to a minor. She is to be arraigned March 31 before Benton County Senior Circuit Judge Tom Keith.

The young man went to her house on a January evening while her husband was out of town, according to a probable cause affidavit submitted by Detective Mark Jordan. The boy later told police they had sex and he stayed the night.

Monroe was suspended with pay from the district, school officials said.

According to the affidavit, Monroe sent a text message to a fellow teacher at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 14 that read, "Help! I've made the worst decision of my life. And I don't know what to do." Monroe said that January night she was drinking and texting with a student. She said the student wanted to come over but she told him no. Eventually, he came over and they had sex three times.

The fellow teacher guessed which student.

Later that evening, Monroe texted, "You don't hate me do you?" and "At least he was legal. Haha," the affidavit says.

On Feb. 16, Monroe texted she was going to a birthday party for another student, although the fellow teacher warned her not to go.

Tuesday morning, the fellow teacher went to Principal Steve Jacoby and police were summoned. The student was interviewed and confirmed he had sex with his teacher. The student claimed she invited him over that night and he drank a couple of her beers, the affidavit says.

Monroe initially denied the allegations but then admitted having sex with the student, the affidavit states. Police asked her if the boy forced himself on her, and she said no.

Continued here.

Former Teacher Gets 6 Years for Sex With Students

Allena Ward Faced 90 Years Behind Bars

The chants of "racist" outside the Laurens County Courthouse were a response to what was going on inside.

"Their children have been damaged for life, but who cares," Rev. David Kennedy said. He is a community activist and friend of some of the victim's and their families. He believes Ward's punishment was very light because she is a white woman who victimized black children.

24-year-old Allena Ward was sentenced to 6 years in prison by Judge Casey Manning. She faced a possible 90 years behind bars for the six charges she was facing.

Ward pleaded guilty in September to having sexual relationships with five of her former Bell Street Middle School students in Clinton. She has been on house arrest for the last year since her arrest in February of 2007.

Reporter Kristen Nastasia asked 8th Circuit Solicitor Jerry Peace if this is a light sentence. "You can understand the families being upset," Peace answered, "But when you look to see how these cases are resolved, this is an appropriate range in how they are resolved. I would have been happy with anywhere from five to eight years and with six, that is in the range," Peace said.

Nastasia then took the racism concerns to Solicitor Peace: "Do you think this was a racist decision in any way," Nastasia asked.

"Did you see who the judge was? It's hard to say it was a racist decision when we had Judge Manning on the bench. You can be dissatisfied with things, but racism doesn't play in this case at all," Peace answered.

Judge Casey Manning is an African-American and Peace says Ward's defense team decided to plead their case in front of him.

An emotional case, where a young teacher admitted her guilt and apologized Tuesday in front of her parents, family and the five victim's families.

"I wish healing for each person effected by my carelessness and offer my deepest and most sincere apologies to these young men, their families and this community," Ward said in court.

Ward will likely only serve 85% of her 6-year sentence. She will have to be housed in a maximum security prison due to the nature of the crimes.

A psychologist also took the stand today in Ward's defense diagnosing her with dependent personality disorder and a sexual disorder. Dr. Deborah Watson blamed Ward's bad decision making, in part, to these mental issues.

WSPA.com