A New Jersey Catholic high school teacher faces charges after allegedly having sex with a male student from the school when he was 17. ...
A New Jersey Catholic high school teacher faces charges after allegedly having sex with a male student from the school when he was 17.
Bridget Sipera, 36, of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, is accused of initiating a sexual relationship with a 'recent graduate' of Camden Catholic High School - where she taught literature - in January 2019 that lasted 18 months.
The Camden County Prosecutor's Office said that the unnamed boy told local police about the relationship on August 6, which led to Sipera's arrest on multiple charges including second degree sexual assault on August 26.
Authorities said the sexual relationship began when the boy was in one of Sipera's classes and ended in March.
Prosecutors said the Sipera had 'supervisory or disciplinary power' over the then-student and specified that the victim was over 16 when the incidents occurred.
A probable cause statement indicated that the boy claimed to have had sex with Sipera about 60 times during the 18-month period, the Courier Post reported.
Sipera was a teacher at Camden Catholic High School (pictured), where she was also the girls' lacrosse coach. The school said Thursday it had fired her immediately
She was voted 'coolest teacher' by students in a Preston & Steve Show radio poll in 2013
The boy told police that he and Sipera had sex inside his car at multiple Cherry Hill locations, including at a hotel parking lot and in Cooper River Park, the court document said.
The probable cause statement also noted that the boy said he and Sipera had sex at Sipera's home, her mother's home and his own home.
The boy was said to have been able to provide police with 'specific details of the layout' of Sipera and her mother's homes.
Sipera allegedly admitted to offenses 'which took place in multiple towns,' although it's unclear what the specific offenses were.
'Camden Catholic High School will be cooperating fully with local law enforcement,' the school said Thursday in a statement obtained by the Courier Post, adding that it had immediately fired Sipera.
Sipera had been the school's girl's lacrosse team coach and was named Coach of the Year by the Women's Lacrosse Club of South Jersey, a 2019 edition of the school's online magazine said.
Sipera was voted one of 2013's 'Coolest Teachers' by school students in a Preston & Steve Show poll.
In the school's 2017-2018 yearbook, she was listed as part of the McAuley Program, which assists students 'with mild learning disabilities.'
Sipera was charged with one count of second-degree sexual assault and one count of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child in Camden County.
She was also charged with one count of second-degree sexual assault and one count of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child for crimes that occurred in nearby Gloucester Township, New Jersey.
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