Cops arrest 26-year-old former HS teacher, accuse her of sexual intercourse with male student

Authorities arrested a 26-year-old former teacher of an Arkansas high school and accused her of engaging in sexual intercourse with a male student.

What are the details?

The Cross County Sheriff's Office said Kara Lee, formerly of Cross County High School in Cherry Valley, was arrested in connection with incidents that occurred last November and December. It isn't clear when Lee's employment ended.

The sheriff's office added that the Crimes Against Children Division received a call, after which an investigation was launched "finding that Lee had inappropriate physical touching and sexual intercourse with a male student. This investigation is ongoing."

A jail record indicates Lee was charged with three counts of first-degree sexual assault and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Lee was booked at 10 a.m. Thursday and released about two hours later, the jail record also says.

Anything else?

A school district news item posted over a year ago introduced Lee as a new teacher of high school resource math and a recent graduate of Arkansas State University with a degree in psychology.

“Cross County will always be home, and I’m excited to be a Thunderbird again!” Lee is quoted as remarking in the news entry.

The entry adds that Lee "enjoys horseback riding, barrel racing, hiking, kayaking, and field testing with her dog Bru. She is excited for her first year teaching, and is looking forward to meeting everyone."

Image source: Cross County (Ark.) School District

How are folks reacting?

A Yahoo News story on the arrest has received more than 1,000 comments and counting since it was posted Thursday:

• "Seems like [there are] few men these days in the news for same crime," one commenter wrote. "As long as women know they get 30 days in the slammer instead of 30 years like a man expect many more 'hot for teacher' stories in the news."
• "It's called rape. Why make it sound more innocent?" another commenter asked. "They have no problem using that word when the gender is reversed."
• "Don't just take the word of the kid," another commenter cautioned. "Kids lie, and lives get ruined trying to get back or rid of the teacher. What issues does he have with the teacher? I'm very suspicious since this has happen[ed] to 2 people I know who ended up in jail on hearsay."

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