A former Ripon High School teacher has been charged with allegedly having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student during the 2016-17 school year.
Samantha Fitzpatrick, 28, of Oshkosh, was charged with child enticement, sexual assault of a student by school staff, exposing a child to harmful material and obstructing an officer in Fond du Lac County court.
Multiple teachers told Ripon Police they were suspicious of something going on between Fitzpatrick and a 17-year-old male student, according to a criminal complaint.
Both Fitzpatrick and the student denied any kind of relationship, police said.
However, after a forensic download of Fitzpatrick's phone, investigators found many sexually explicit conversations between her and the student, the criminal complaint explained.
Those conversations included exchanging inappropriate pictures and detailing sexual acts between the two, court documents said. These conversations took place mostly via Facebook Messenger, investigators found.
Some of the conversations also referenced the two having sex, police said. The alleged relationship took place from November 2016 to May 2017.
Fitzpatrick has not been employed by the Ripon Area School District since May 3, 2017, police said.
Ripon Area School District Superintendent Mary Whitrock released a statement Wednesday, saying:
“I can share with you the communication that we have sent out to parents in the district. In an effort to not hinder the police investigation, we are not commenting further. At this point, we need to let the criminal justice system do its work.”
