A married teacher has been arrested for an alleged sexual relationship with a student after they were caught undressing in a nature reserve.
Jessica Sawicki, 37, of Point Pleasant, New Jersey, taught English at Hamilton High School West in Trenton, about a 20-minute drive from the reservation.
She is accused of sexually assaulting the student – described as “at least 16 but not yet 18” – at the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area in Upper Freehold.
Monmouth County prosecutors said in a statement: “On several occasions, Sawicki allegedly engaged in sexual acts with the victim at the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area.”
According to an affidavit of probable cause obtained by The AfterSawicki allegedly admitted to authorities that she and the teen had met at least five times since December to have “unprotected sex.”
Jessica Sawicki (pictured), 37, a high school English teacher in New Jersey, is accused of having a sexual relationship with a student
Sawicki and the student are said to have had several rendezvous in the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area, a wildlife refuge.
Hamilton High School West, where Sawicki taught English, put the teacher on administrative leave after they learned of the investigation
The document also states that the 37-year-old married teacher and the student had sex in the back of the teen’s car.
On Sunday, New Jersey Fish and Wildlife officers found Sawicki and the student in a “state of undress.”
In a now-deleted school profile, Sawicki raved about her teaching job at Hamilton High School West.
She wrote: ‘This is my seventh year working at Hamilton West teaching English…I really enjoy getting to know the students here and helping them become the best versions of themselves as they strive to achieve their future’.
After the school learned of the investigation involving Sawicki, they placed her on administrative leave.
In a statement on the school’s website, the principal, Brian Smith, and the superintendent, Scott Rocco, said, “Our school district was made aware of a police investigation involving a teacher who works at Hamilton High West. “As a result of the information gathered, the school district took immediate action to place the individual on administrative leave.”
Sawicki (pictured) and the teenage student allegedly had sex in the teen’s car
Brian Smith and Scott Rocco, the respective principal and superintendent of Hamilton High School West, issued a statement saying the school “took immediate action” after learning of the investigation. The statement noted that there was “no evidence” that any of the alleged incidents occurred on school property
The statement noted that there was no “indication that any of the alleged actions occurred on school property.”
Smith and Rocco assured community members that “our district has fully cooperated with the district attorney’s office during their investigation and will continue to do so, as necessary.”
They condemned the alleged incident, saying it is “contrary to our professional standards as a school district and far removed from the expectations we have for an employee’s personal conduct.”
The statement continued: “We will not tolerate any action that harms or could harm our students.”
In an effort to distinguish the school from Sawicki’s alleged unsavory behavior, Smith and Rocco said, “The actions of one staff member do not represent the hard work and dedication of our entire community.”
After being arrested “without incident” on Monday, Sawicki was booked into the Monmouth County Correctional Institution, where she will remain pending a detention hearing scheduled for next week.
In a rackThe Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office told Sawicki that the investigation was conducted by members of the MCPO Special Victims Bureau, the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office and the New Jersey State Police.
Jessica Sawicki has been charged with five counts of second-degree sexual assault and five counts of second-degree sexual assault on the welfare of a child.