Lyndsey Sherrod Bates, a former special education teacher in Alabama, has pleaded guilty to having sex with two students. According to al.com, Bates, who was also a volleyball coach at Madison County High School, was sentenced to time served and three years of probation.
Both students were 16 years old at the time of their encounters with the 23-year-old teacher.
After she was initially taken into custody, Bates’ husband, Andrew, filed for divorce which was later finalized.
Along with the sentencing, Bates will have to register as a sex offender.
“She’s going to be a sex offender and felon,” Madison County Assistant District Attorney Tim Douthit said. “But we’re not sending people to jail for consensual sex without any evidence of coercion.”
Over the course of the past year alone, a handful of teachers have been arrested on similar charges, including 25-year-old substitute teacher Alexis Mercedes Boberg in Baltimore, Beulah High School teacher Kelsie Schmidt in North Dakota, Rancocas Valley Regional High School teacher Alexandra Reiner in New Jersey, and 50-year-old Florida substitute teacher Angela Jean Stanton in Florida. Additionally, Texas teachers Meredith Null and Edna Longoria were arrested on similar charges.
As for why the number of these incidents has seemingly increased, studies suggest that smartphones are the primary reason for the spike in illicit relationships, as it allows teachers to communicate with the minors without supervision.
According to a report from the Texas Education Association, smartphones make easy for teachers to privately text and talk with students and also make it possible for teachers and students to share explicit images.
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