Briona Inman, a 24-year-old teacher at Freedom High School in Tampa, Florida, has been arrested for allegedly having sex with a 16-year-old student.
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, Inman had befriended the student at school before bringing him home to have sex with him. Once the sheriff’s office was notified of the allegations, it launched an investigation.
Inman was arrested on a charge of soliciting or engaging in sexual conduct with a student by an authority figure.
“We are shocked and deeply troubled by these charges,” Hillsborough County Public Schools said in a statement, via the Tampa Bay Times. “This individual had only been working in the district since August of this school year. After being made aware of the allegations and the subsequent arrest, we took immediate action and have terminated her from her employment. The safety and well-being of our students is our top priority.”
Inman was fired as soon as the school became aware of the allegations.
Florida deputies arrest high school employee, Briona Inman, 24, who allegedly had sex with underage studenthttps://t.co/IjgiFAb9je
— atasteofcreole (@atasteofcreole) February 10, 2023
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.
