A female teacher in Tennessee who reportedly liked to “build relationships” with pupils in a non-academic setting has been arrested and charged.
As WTVC NewsChannel 9 reported earlier this week, police deputies in the Hamilton County Sheriff’s office arrested 28-year-old Hamilton County teacher Casey McGrath and charged her with statutory rape.
McGrath was detained on Aug. 18 according to the station and is out on release after posting a $10,000 bond. She will be arraigned in Hamilton County Criminal Court on Sept. 6.
On Tuesday, WTVC received a copy of the indictment against McGrath, which was dated August 14. According to the file, McGrath unlawfully engaged in sexual activity with a person between the ages of 13 and 18.
Hamilton County schools spokesman Steve Doremus told Fox News on Friday that McGrath is no longer an employee of the school district.
Ms. McGrath was suspended without pay on March 31. She was not rehired for the current school year.
McGrath began working at Central High as a 10th grade geometry teacher in 2020 according to a deleted online article in the school’s newspaper. She was previously employed by nearby East Ridge Middle School.
McGrath also volunteered as as an assistant volleyball coach with the school. As Fox News reported on Friday, she infamously told a student newspaper in deleted article that “being able to spend time with students and build relationships with them” in a non-academic setting gave her the chance to get to know them even more.
She hoped that “students would believe in their own capability to do math” and that she “cared about them as a person, not just a student.”
One high school junior described McGrath as “a very involved teacher” who “respected” her students.
She’s a very involved teacher. I can tell she respected her students, which makes me have respect for her in turn.
Fox News notes that aggravated statutory rape, which is what McGrath is charged with is a class D felony. It is punishable by two to 12 years in prison under Tennessee sentencing guidelines.
