LEGAL MANEUVER

Ex-Teacher No Longer Faces Sex Crime Charges After Marrying Student

Prosecutors said they could no longer compel the student to testify against her, as they were protected by spousal privilege.

A former teacher in Jasper County, Missouri, charged with having sex with a student has escaped prosecution—because she and the student got married. Baylee Turner, 26, was charged in early 2019 after she allegedly had sex with a male student. It’s unknown whether the student was a minor at the time of the incident, but it is a violation of Missouri law regardless of the student’s age. However, because Turner and the student got married since the event in question, the student was protected by spousal privilege and could no longer be compelled to testify against her. Prosecutors have since sought to dismiss the charge against her, assistant prosecutor Nate Dally told the Joplin Globe, and Turner has surrendered her teaching license.