DeLand, FL - A former New Smyrna Beach middle school teacher gets three years behind bars after admitting that she had sex with one of her eighth-grade students in a Volusia County courtroom.
Stephanie Peterson was also sentenced today (December 19th) by Florida 7th Circuit Judge Raul Zambrano to two years of house arrest once she's allowed to leave prison followed by five years' probation and lifetime registration as a sex offender.
Zambrano's ruling came at the end of a sentencing hearing where prosecutors for Florida 7th Circuit State Attorney R.J. Larizza argued for at least six years in prison based on her conduct with that boy, who was 14 years old at the time.
The plea deal struck between the 27-year-old Peterson and prosecutors could have seen her sent to prison for anywhere between 5 and 10 years, but her legal team was given the opportunity to argue for lower than that and they did, saying that her prior history of drug abuse and her bipolar disorder diagnosis should be considered as mitigating factors.
The defense was also allowed to call up witnesses as part of their strategy to get Peterson less time in prison.
Peterson entered her guilty plea in October to two felonies, including lewd and lascivious battery sex act with a child and transmitting harmful material to minors through an electronic device.
She was arrested in February by the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, around three months after the sexual relationship with the boy started and a few days after she resigned her teaching position with Volusia County Schools.
VCSO says Peterson started the sexual relationship with the boy last November and it continued for several months, with Peterson supplying him drugs and nude photos of herself.
