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Carrie Witt, a 42-year-old former Alabama high school teacher, entered a guilty plea this week. Witt was accused of having sex with two students.
Witt was teaching history, psychology, and social studies at Decatur High School. She was also the coach of the girls’ golf and junior varsity cheer team when she allegedly had sex with two male students, according to the Decatur Daily.
One of the students was 17, while the other was 18.
Witt entered a guilty plea to one count of a school employee engaging in a sex act with a student under the age of 19. It is a Class B felony that requires Witt to register as a sex offender and she could face up to 20 years behind bars.
Former Decatur High School teacher Carrie Witt is facing up to 20 years in prison after she pled guilty to engaging in a sex act with a student in court today. https://t.co/HfwOU81crm
— WAFF 48 (@waff48) March 23, 2021
“We’re glad that it’s resolved, that it’s done,” Morgan County Assistant District Attorney Courtney Schellack said. “This has been a long case, between getting it dismissed by Judge Thompson and going to the Court of Criminal Appeals and bringing it back [to Circuit Court]. It’s been a long process, and we’re just glad it’s done for the community and the victims in the case.”
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 it easy for teachers to privately text and talk with students and also make it possible for teachers and students to share explicit images.
