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Rayna Culver, a 43-year-old married middle school teacher from New Jersey, is accused of carrying on a long-term sexual relationship with her 15-year-old student, whom prosecutors say she adopted.
What Happened?
Culver was arrested in May on charges of second-degree sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child. According to the criminal complaint, the victim was Culver’s former student at Rivera Middle School in Trenton, New Jersey. The two were described as “very close” and would talk frequently during the school year, according to The Trentonian.
When the young boy was kicked out of a relative’s home in December 2015, Culver invited him to stay with her. In early 2016, she became his legal guardian.
He would later tell investigators that he believed Culver invited him into her home to eventually “make sex a part of their relationship,” according to court documents, cited by South Jersey Times, stated.
The student reportedly told authorities that his relationship with Culver turned sexual in June 2016, when she began to fondle him one night before bed, stripped off his clothes, then procedded to perform oral sex on him and have intercourse with him.
“After that first incident, they would engage in sex often, and it was to the point where he felt that if he told her to stop she would get mad and kick him out of the house,” according to the complaint.
The 15-year-old eventually sent Culver a text message allegedly saying he no longer wanted to have sex, but she expressed a desire to continue with the affair, according to the complaint.
He told authorities that the two of them had sex almost every day over the course of several months.
In April, the alleged victim gave the authorities his cellphone containing text message exchanges with Culver, whose phone number was listed under the entry “Mom.”
Rayna Culver
Rayna Culver is a 43-year-old married teacher at Rivera Middle School in Trenton. Culver is accused of having a long-term sexual relationship with a former 15-year-old student who she legally adopted.
