Neb. case illustrates teacher sex abuse issues

Last seen Oct. 26
According to police, letters found in Peterson's apartment sent by the boy from the home said he still loved his "Baby Gurl," longed to have her hold him and that the relationship was not just about the sex.

The AP had previously named the boy but later removed his name because the most recent charges allege he was the victim of a sex crime.

Though the letters didn't surface until police began investigating in October, rumors swirled school hallways that the two were in a relationship in August.

But complaints the school received weren't enough to make Chessmore think that Peterson might be having sex with a student, and a verbal warning from the principal seemed to solve the problem, the superintendent said.

The boy said Peterson told him to stay away, but they began talking again a month later and Peterson eventually suggested the trip.

The boy said he went along with the plan because he wanted to get away from his problems in Lexington. He told Peterson that he wanted to visit his birthplace in Penjamo, a small town in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato, where his father lives.

He was last seen in Lexington on Oct. 26.

One day earlier, Chessmore had told Peterson he was putting her on paid leave and investigating new complaints from school staff of her relationship with the boy. Chessmore said those complaints were more serious than ever, raising suspicions that Peterson and the boy were having sex.

Chessmore said he and Peterson had a brief conversation in which he told her not to return to the school, and she walked out the door. Chessmore would not say what Peterson said.

Chessmore said he coached a summer girls' softball team with Peterson.

"If you would have seen her working with the kids on the field, if you would have seen her in the classroom, if you would have seen her in life, she was a typical 25-year-old woman," Chessmore said.

‘Anything criminal, we didn't have’
She was an active community member, playing on softball teams or doing other activities. She was the daughter of educators, a basketball player and member of the National Honors Society and Future Educators of America.

Her duplex apartment had an adjustable basketball hoop in the driveway, set 8 feet high for her daughter. A sign by the front door showed she was part of Lexington Middle School's coaching staff. Two patio chairs, a yellow plastic chair for a small child and a half-filled laundry hamper sat on a small fenced-in patio on the apartment's side.

A relative of the landlord said Peterson gave no notice before leaving.

Chessmore said he wasn't 100 percent confident Peterson would lose her job when he put her on leave.

"I'm not sure no matter what age you are, writing a letter to someone telling them you love them makes you a sex offender," said Chessmore, adding that the district thought it had enough evidence to discipline Peterson and try to fire her.

"Anything criminal, we didn't have. The police got that later," Chessmore said.

Chessmore recommended on Wednesday that the school board fire her. The board was set to meet Monday to vote on the recommendation. The district would then file a complaint to the Nebraska Department of Education to try to get Peterson's teaching license revoked.

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