by Chris Peterson
A former teacher at Maloney High School in Meriden, CT has been charged in connection with an alleged inappropriate relationship with a student, according to police and court records. Ciara Picard, a former music teacher at the school, turned herself in to authorities and now faces five counts of second-degree sexual assault.
Investigators say the alleged relationship began while the student was still enrolled at Maloney High School and Picard was his teacher. The student, now an adult, told police that the inappropriate conduct began when he was a freshman and continued through his junior and senior years. Court documents describe a progression from communication to sexual messages, trips taken together, and physical contact that the student says occurred while he was underage.
According to the police report, the student stated that the relationship intensified following the death of his father, a period during which he was especially vulnerable. He reported receiving explicit messages and photos from Picard and later alleged that she sexually assaulted him before he turned eighteen. Picard initially denied that any relationship existed, but later acknowledged that their text messages crossed professional boundaries and admitted that the situation was not appropriate. She has claimed that physical contact did not occur until after the student was in college.
Picard resigned from her position with the Meriden school district in August. Once the allegations were brought forward, the Meriden Board of Education referred the matter to police for investigation. Law enforcement officials stated that student safety remains their highest priority.
Honestly, stories like this just make my stomach drop. Not because they’re shocking anymore, but because they’re such a betrayal of what school is supposed to be. Kids are put in classrooms with the assumption that the adults there will protect them, full stop.
When someone in that position crosses a line, especially with a student who’s already vulnerable, it’s not just inappropriate, it’s infuriating. I’m glad the former student came forward and that this is being taken seriously, but it’s hard not to feel angry that it happened at all. This is exactly why boundaries in education aren’t negotiable. The damage left behind is real, and it shouldn’t be on students to carry it.
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