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| Teacher not prosecuted for affair |
4/4/2007 |
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3 April 2007
AMSTERDAM – A 41-year-old teacher from the Montessori Lyceum charged with the sexual abuse of a 16-year-old student will not be prosecuted after all.
The teacher did engage in criminal activity by getting sexually involved with an underage person in his charge. However the public prosecution department has decided not to proceed with prosecution because the two are still in a relationship and the former student is now legally an adult.
The prosecutor''s office said its decision not to take the case further was "an exception." "In theory teachers who start a sexual relationship with a student under the age of 18 are always prosecuted."
The publicity surrounding the case has been damaging for the science teacher, the prosecutor''s office said. He was suspended from his position, then dismissed and will "most probably" never be able to work as a teacher again.
The teacher reportedly has had a relationship with the girl since 2004. The girl''s mother filed a report against the man in January. She worked at the same school and says no action was taken when she alerted the school administration to the matter.
The administration gave the teacher severance pay of EUR 20,000 and a farewell party.
Teachers are not allowed to maintain sexual relationships with students even when it is consensual. The education inspectorate says the school is required to report any such cases.
The school director told De Telegraaf earlier that he did not think it was necessary in this case.
[Copyright Expatica News + ANP 2007]
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