Arkansas schoolteacher loses job and faces criminal charges after 'seducing' four of her students

The allegations of underage sex came to light because boys brag, says Arkansas state prosecutor

Jessie Lorene Goline faces up to 40 years in jail if convicted of first-degree sexual assault (Craighead County Sheriff's Department and Detention Center)

A US teacher faces one count of first-degree sexual assault after allegedly having sex with four of her students, including two which took place in her apartment on the same day, according to police.

The police affidavit about the charge against Art teacher Jessie Lorene Goline states that the sexual acts happened between January and April 2016.

Prosecutors said that the single charge was filed as only one of the students was under 18 years of age at the time of the alleged incidents.

The investigation into the schoolteacher started when parents accused the 25-year-old of having sexual relations with several students at Marked Tree High School, where Goline taught. Staff at the school intervened when a parent threatened to “do bodily harm” to the art teacher.

A state prosecutor said: “Boys brag”, by way of explaining how Goline was charged with underage sex.

Goline admitted to school authorities that she had inappropriate sexual relationships with four students, according to Arkansas Online.

The schoolteacher said she thought one student was 18 years old but later discovered he was “way younger than what he had told her,” according to the affidavit.

The male students – one from East Poinsett County School District and three from Marked Tree School District – stated that they had exchanged texts with the teacher and their conversations became more overtly sexual over time.

One student alleges that Goline took him to her apartment, where they had sex. Afterwards, she drove him back home.

The art teacher reportedly sent another student a picture of herself wearing a thong.

During the investigations, Goline had a tearful conversation with Matt Wright, the head teacher of Marked Tree High School.

When Wright asked whether Goline had acted inappropriately with the students, she said: “We had sex,” according to Arkansas court documents.

“I’m not going to lose my husband,” she told Wright, according to a court affidavit seen by KAIT-TV.

When the allegations came to light, Goline was sacked from her job and ordered not to enter school property. She was formally dismissed on 19 June by an Arkansas Department of Education tribunal.

“We did not and will not tolerate behaviour such as this,” superintendent of Marked Tree School District Matt Wright said. “We take the privilege of serving Marked Tree students seriously and are pleased that our procedures of immediate removal and reporting helped move this incident toward final resolution and justice.”

The 25-year-old art teacher was released on a $5,000 bond. Goline could face up to a 40-year jail sentence if convicted.