Teacher charged with sexual acts against 18 year old student, pleads guilty to misdemeanors

(Original Post 4-16-08)

A 33 year old Raleigh, NC teacher who allegedly had sex with an 18 year old student at her apartmment this weekend was charged with a single count of taking indecent liberties with a student. Shannon Lee Best was charged because no relationship between a teacher and a student is consensual under North Carolina law.

Although the alleged victim is of legal age, police said criminal charges are being pursued because of the teacher-student nature of the alleged encounter."Under (state) statute, there is no age of consent when the suspect is a teacher and the victim is a student," Sughrue said.

Michael Evans, a spokesman for the Wake County Public School System, said Best taught at Sanderson High since August 2004.Students who were in her class, said Tuesday they were shocked by the news."She was a good person. She was a really nice teacher," said student Kendall Joyner said. "It's crazy – stuff that happens these days," another student, Ashley Fletcher, said. "You never know anymore."

Best was released from the Wake County jail after posting a $5000 bond.

(Update 4-19-08) A second student is allegedly involved in the sleepover at Best's apartment last weekend. The warrant said that the sleepovers were so Best could take them to a track meet, and that two photos, one of Best nude, and the second of her kissing a student, were taken. The nude photo was sent to the student she was sexually involved with, and police are searching for other victims. Police are searching Best's school owned computer and three flash drives.

(Update 6-19-08) Best was sentenced to 45 days in jail, suspended, 18 months of unsupervised probation, and a $250 fine and court costs. Best pleaded down to misdemeanor attempted crime against nature and giving alcohol to a student. She must have no contact with her victim at all or minors without adult supervision. Best now works at a restaraunt, but plans to get back into teaching again.

"We wanted to make sure she pled to something that was on her record, so, if someone did a background check, it would be a red flag that it was something they needed to inquire about,"
said Wake County District Attorney Jeff Cruden.

Best's defense attorney, Lee Turner, said his client, who resigned from the Wake County Public School System in April after nearly four years of teaching at Sanderson, knows what she did was improper and irresponsible and that she is devastated by what she did.

Turner said she comes from a family of teachers in Kinston and that he has received e-mails and letters from colleagues and parents about how she was a motivational teacher who inspired children who did not want to be in school.She is now working at a restaurant in Sampson County where she grew up but hopes to get back to teaching some day, he said."

Her whole life was planned around being a teacher, and apparently, she was a very good teacher from all I've learned," Turner said. "Hopefully, somewhere, someone down the line will give her an opportunity again."