Married Nicole Hernandez, 30, taught the teen at middle school before later teaching him at high school, where she is accused of grooming him before having sex with him in her car
A female former “teacher of the month” is set to face trial for allegedly having sex with a male pupil in the back of her Jeep.
Art teacher Nicole Hernandez, 30, is said to have groomed, manipulated and ‘isolated‘ the teenage high school student from friends and familyMarried Hernandez – also known as Nikki Baird – was arrested in May on four felony counts for unlawful relations with the 17-year-old boy. An arrest affidavit obtained by local media in the US said: “He described how she befriended him, then isolated him from others.”
The physical contact “started as Baird touching or rubbing his back or shoulders,” before she began forcing him to give her hugs, according to the affidavit.
By the teen’s senior year at Wichita North High School in Kansas, Baird allegedly started meeting him off school grounds, even getting his mum’s approval to go on a trip to an arts centre, where she held his hand for the first time, the documents state.
The physical contact allegedly escalated at school, Baird kissing the teen on the neck during their hugs and repeatedly asking him “if he wanted her to kiss him,” according to the affidavit. It then states: “He was nervous and eventually said yes.”
She is said to have told the boy “her marriage was struggling” and gave him her personal cell number and also sent love letters. ” According to the affidavit, one letter read: “I hope and pray one day I get the chance to be with you” and “I know that I love you.”
Baird told the boy to “act normal” and keep their relationship a secret, the student told police. She invited him into her office three times during his last week of school and ordered him to touch her, the affidavit states.
Then on graduation night, Baird allegedly told the victim to meet her in an unsuspecting neighbourhood and asked if he wanted to have sex in her car, according to the affidavit.
The student said he was nervous and felt pressured, the documents state. He allegedly agreed to the encounter and Baird is said to have claimed they “‘won’t get in trouble because he graduated”.
At the end of the school year, with senior classes finished, Baird allegedly met the teenager three to four times a week to engage in more sexual activity in the back seat of her Jeep, the documents claim.
Once the victim officially graduated, he began receiving nude photos of Baird and told investigators that additional sexual encounters occurred during that time, it is claimed.
Baird was arrested on May 22, made her first court appearance and was released within days after posting a $50,000 bond.
On Tuesday, a judge determined there is enough evidence for the high school art teacher to face trial on all four counts, officially moving the case to the next stage. Her arraignment is now scheduled for December 19.
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