Teacher who molested boy told ‘calm down’ by judge as she cries | World | News
A former teacher was seen crying with one of her 11-year-old students as she pleaded guilty to one count of child seduction and two counts of sexual abuse by school staff.
The court heard how Madison Bergmann stalked the student at her former school in Wisconsin and sent her thousands of sexually explicit messages over several months. The 26-year-old former fifth-grade teacher at River Crest Elementary School also pleaded not guilty to several other charges as part of the plea deal she would accept. The dropped charges included first-degree sexual assault on a child, use of a computer to facilitate child sex crimes, exposing a child to harmful disclosures, and additional charges of sexual abuse and child seduction by school personnel.
Footage shown in court showed her crying with crumpled tissues in her hand as the judge told her to calm down. His disgusting abuse only came to light when the fifth-grader’s mother overheard her son talking to the teacher on the phone. Confused as to why she was phoning her son, the victim’s mother found sexual messages in which the pair discussed during lunch and in class after school.
In court, Traci Hall, the school’s resource officer, described how Bergmann and his victim exchanged more than 33,000 messages, 100 “love notes” and artwork.
Many of the messages were reportedly of a disturbingly sexual nature, including messages that talked about touching, kissing and how to arouse Bergmann in class.
The father of the child who found the messages went directly to the school, taking printouts of his conversations and disturbing messages. The messages were allegedly about how much she enjoyed his kisses and touching her.
Some other messages allegedly read: “I love you, I want to kiss you, you turn me on and I’m obsessed with you.” One message read: “Man I love you so much more – like I didn’t think it was possible – but oh my god as I read today…”
The teacher was arrested in May. Just three months before her planned wedding, there was a knock on the door, but after the truth of her abuse was revealed, her blind partner quickly called off the marriage.
Defending his client, lawyer Joseph Tamburino claimed that authorities “overcharged” him. He added: “There is never any language where he says, ‘I want to have sex with you,’ or ‘I want you to do this with me.’
“They talk a lot about kissing, touching lips, cheeks and legs. They also talk about some sexual things about a woman’s body and a man’s body. But nothing like ‘This is what I want you to do to me’ or ‘This is what I’m going to do to you’.”
The judge ruled that probable cause existed to bring charges. Bergmann was sentenced to six years in prison followed by six years of probation.
