I'M 17, SHE'S 35 BUT AGE IS JUST A NUMBER
Now, wonders they say shall
never end. And love can be a pretty uncontrollable feeling at strange times.
A woman teacher who spent
the night in a pupil’s bed wearing only her jeans and bra has narrowly avoided
a prison sentence.
Bernadette Smith was said
to be infatuated with Gary Ralston, who was 16 at the time.
That obsession cost the
married 35-year-old her job and reputation, a court heard.
He said it was only the
fact that she had not gone further with the boy that had saved her from a jail
sentence.
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| 35 year old Bernadette Smith |
Gary revealed how his
relationship with Smith, who was his teacher during third, fourth and fifth
year, began during secret meetings at school.
‘When I started year six,
Bernadette was no longer my teacher, but we’d pass each other in the corridor,
say hello and smile,’ he said. He said that Smith later summoned him to her
classroom.
‘I walked in and as soon as
I sat down she said, “Ever since we’ve been back at school and I’ve seen you
around, I’ve been realising I have feelings for you”,’ he said.
He said it was only the
fact that she had not gone further with the boy that had saved her from a jail
sentence.
Gary revealed how his
relationship with Smith, who was his teacher during third, fourth and fifth
year, began during secret meetings at
school.
‘When I started year six,
Bernadette was no longer my teacher, but we’d pass each other in the corridor,
say hello and smile,’ he said. He said that Smith later summoned him to her
classroom.
‘I walked in and as soon as
I sat down she said, “Ever since we’ve been back at school and I’ve seen you
around, I’ve been realising I have feelings for you”,’ he said.
Describing himself as
‘curious’ and ‘excited’, Gary agreed to meet the history and English teacher on
September 13 last year.
The pair drove to a park in
Falkirk, Scotland, and went for a walk but when they got back to the car, Smith
kissed him passionately.
Gary said he worried for
Smith’s job, husband and family but said she ‘didn’t seem too bothered’.
He confided in his father,
who warned him to be careful but his grandmother called Bannockburn High School
to complain. Smith was suspended immediately.
Despite their relationship
being made public, they stayed together the next night at Gary’s home in Cowie.
Gary said: ‘We got ready
for bed and I felt nervous. I got into bed with my boxers on. She took off her
top, but kept her bra and jeans on, and slid in beside me.
‘We cuddled and talked –
nothing else happened.’
His father Richard Ralston,
42, said: ‘I wasn’t pleased about what happened, but you’re an adult at 16 in
Scotland so I didn’t want to interfere too much.
‘I want Gary to make
decisions and learn from any mistakes.’
Prosecutor Ann Orr told
Stirling Sheriff Court that when interviewed, Smith said ‘she loved the boy and
they both wanted to be together’. She admitted kissing Gary and staying the
night in his bedroom.
There was no suggestion
that Gary had suffered any long-term harm, the court was told.
Smith, of Denny,
Stirlingshire, pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual activity with a pupil while
in a position of trust, between September 13 and 20 last year.
She was placed under
supervision for two years and will remain on the sex offenders’ register for
the same period.
Her solicitor, Andrew Gibb,
said she was suspended by the General Teaching Council for Scotland and would
be struck off at a hearing in a few weeks’ time. She has also separated from
her husband.
Sheriff Robertson told the
court Smith’s conduct was towards the lesser end of the offending scale,
adding: ‘It is serious enough of course when a teacher admits this kind of
conduct towards a pupil.
'We expect teachers to
ensure children under their care are safe from abuse and that has not
happened.’
He told Smith that it may
have been that ‘difficulties within your marriage contributed to this
aberration’, but he said many other teachers coped without resorting to such
‘bizarre’ behaviour.
He said it was to her
‘credit’ that she had not blamed her victim and she was assessed as at low risk
of re-offending. He ordered her to
return to court on November 12 for a supervision order review.
Culled from Daily Mail.
Mature Minds Talk
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