Jury Seeks Death for Slasher
Weird Teacher Watch: Donna Goebel Gets 5 Years for Sex with 16-Year-Old
Wednesday, October 28, 2009 at 9:04 am
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| Donna Goebel was convicted of having an affair with a 16-year-old student |
During the trial, the defense claimed Goebel was in an awful marriage, causing her to seek attention and behave out of character. Her daughter Jennifer even wrote the judge saying her mother was in a "poisonous destructive relationship." But the jury wasn't buying.
Judge James Morley acknowledged the difficulty of sentencing the woman -- five years is unusually severe in a female pedophile's case. And New Jersey law allows adults to have sex with 16-year-olds if they're not authority figures, like teachers...
The judge also recognized Goebel's tenuous mental state due to her marriage. "It's possible she just wanted to be around someone who was nice to her and got caught up in something she shouldn't have," he said in court.
Though she's now divorced and engaged to be remarried, the 45-year-old woman's nuptials will be on hold for the next five years.
See previous episodes of Weird Teacher Watch.
Tags: New Jersey, Weird Teacher Watch
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