A former teacher at a Christian school in Georgia received a 12-year prison sentence on Monday after confessing to the sexual abuse of a 15-year-old student, an incident that resulted in the closure of the private institution.
Sherri Delle Mauldin, aged 61, entered a guilty plea in Greene County Superior Court. Following her sentencing, she was also given 25 years of probation and mandated to register as a sex offender.
The scandal unfolded with accusations that Mauldin engaged in inappropriate behavior with a teenage male student during her tenure at Nathanael Greene Academy, a private Christian school located in Siloam, Georgia. Prosecutors revealed that the abuse spanned a month and included several sexual encounters at various locations.
“This situation involved a 15-year-old child and, let’s be clear, a 60-year-old adult,” remarked Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney T. Wright Barksdale III to The Union-Recorder following the verdict.
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Sherri Delle Mauldin (pictured) was sentenced to 12 years in prison after admitting to sexually abusing a 15-year-old student at Nathanael Greene Academy in Georgia. (Greene County Sheriff’s Office)
Barksdale said prosecutors sought a longer prison term because of several “aggravating circumstances,” including the age gap between Mauldin and the student and the teacher-student relationship.
“Age gap is something that was an aggravated circumstance, and the fact that it was a teacher and a student — that was an aggravating circumstance,” Barksdale said. “The fact that this was a criminal act that took place over the course of a month… was an aggravating circumstance.”
Judge Terry N. Massey ultimately sentenced Mauldin to six fewer years than prosecutors requested.
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Nathanael Greene Academy (not pictured) shut down following allegations involving the two teachers and a student. (iStock)
Mauldin’s attorney had argued for a probationary sentence and asked the court to spare her prison time. During testimony, Mauldin reportedly described herself as being in “a dark place” at the time of the abuse and expressed remorse.
The investigation into Mauldin began after another former Nathanael Greene Academy teacher, Bonnie Elizabeth Brown, 26, was arrested on allegations she also had sexual contact with the same student.
Brown has pleaded not guilty and requested a jury trial, which is scheduled to begin next month, according to prosecutors.
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Bonnie Elizabeth Brown (pictured) was arrested in Greene County, Georgia, on allegations she had sexual contact with a student while employed at Nathanael Greene Academy. (Greene County Sheriff’s Office)
The scandal involving both educators led to the closure of Nathanael Greene Academy, which had operated since 1959. The academy announced it would permanently close last year amid fallout from the investigation.
The teenage victim previously accused school officials of failing to protect him.
“These women took advantage of their positions as my teachers,” the boy said in a statement to 11 Alive previously released through his attorney, Ashley Mitchell.
“My school did not protect me as a child,” he added.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Greene County Sheriff’s Office for comment.