Texas Teacher Arrested On Sex With Student Charges

North Texas forensic science teacher Rachelle Nicole Heenan was arrested and accused of having sex with a student at area hotels. Heenan is a married mother of two and was handcuffed at her home after allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a male student surfaced, MSNBC reports. Excerpts from Heenan’s police report note the student is now 18-years-old but was underage at the time of the alleged sexual relationship. If convicted on the second-degree felony, Heenan faces up to a 20-year prison sentence.

Investigators note that the alleged sexual relationship between the teacher and the student took place from February to May during the recently ended school year. Local law enforcement officers maintain that the teacher and student met outside a local gym and began their sexual relationship, according to NBCDFW. The pair allegedly checked into a hotel later the same evening. CBS News reports that Fort Worth police officers believe the teacher and student followed the same meeting at hotel pattern on the weekend and after school for several months.

“Ultimately the victim and the suspect met each other in the parking lot of a private gym in Fort Worth, held conversations inside the vehicle, and ultimately led to kissing,” Fort Worth Police Sgt. Told CBS News.

When a Hollenstein Career and Technology Center school resource officer learned of the teacher allegedly having sex with the student, the Eagle Mountain-Saginaw Independent School District superintendent was informed and law enforcement alerted. Heenan previously taught biology at Boswell High School. She was placed on paid administrative leave.