N. Austin School Teacher Accused Of Having Sex With Student

NORTH AUSTIN, TX — A former teaching assistant at an Austin high school was recently arrested after being accused of having an inappropriate sexual relationship with a student, according to a published report.

Stephone Mercer, 27, was booked into the Travis County Jail last week after the improper relationship with a student at LBJ High School was exposed, according to the Austin American-Statesman. He was released last Tuesday after posting bail, according to information found online in the Travis County Jail records website.

The principal of LBJ High School in the Austin ISD at 7309 Lazy Creek Dr. told the newspaper Mercer was subsequently fired Oct. 30. The student told police she met the disgraced educator when she started running track during her junior year, according to the report.

An affidavit lays bare the former teacher's grooming techniques in gaining the girl's confidence, encouraging her to unburden her personal issues through conversations with her. In turn, Mercer is said to have expressed to her some of his own personal challenges. The relationship gradually turned sexual, with Mercer said to have admitted to police he had sex with the girl in his truck, according to the report.

School officials learned of the relationship from another student, according to the newspaper report.

The case is the latest in a growing trend of epidemic-like proportions centered on illegal student-teacher relationships in Texas. According to figures compiled by the Statesman, the Texas Education Agency opened 302 investigations into improper teacher-student relationships over the last school year — a 36 percent increase from the prior year and the ninth consecutive year the number has increased.

In an attempt to stem the tide of such incidents, the Texas Legislature during its last session passed Senate Bill 7 that makes more severe the penalty against principals and superintendents failing to report teacher misconduct. Whereas school officials once faced the loss of their teaching license in failing to report such misconduct, they now face potential fines of $10,000 and up to two years in prison with the new law that took effect Sept. 1.

>>> Read the full story at Austin American-Statesman

Photo via Travis County Jail records