Amber Turnage, a 39-year-old teacher from Mississippi, has been arrested on six counts of sexual battery for having intercourse with and performing other sexual acts on a 17-year-old student.
Turnage, 39, a former biology teacher at Provine High School in Jackson, Mississippi, was arrested on May 18 after videos of her having intercourse with an unidentified 17-year-old student emerged.
Turnage, who is married with children, allegedly carried on the relationship with the student from December 2016 until late April of this year. The last sexual encounter between the two occurred on April 27.
The teen’s lawyer, Warren Martin, said the affair was discovered after other students reported videos of Turnage and the 17-year-old was being shared across social media.
According to Martin, the teacher approached his client with the purpose of engaging in an inappropriate sexual relationship. She gave him credit cards and cash payments throughout the relationship in order to conceal the sexual exploits between the two.
“My client was entrapped by a sexual scam,” said Martin. “This teacher saw him, preyed upon him and when she realized he was close to revealing her criminality, she sought efforts to conceal it by offering my client cash payments.”
According to Martin, the teacher would tutor his client and then drop him off at his home in her car, where several of the sexual encounters occurred. He says several other instances happened on the campus of Provine, as well.
Martin also said that the experience has caused his client to become “distraught”.
The Jackson Public School District released a statement on Turnage:
“The District takes these allegations very seriously and is conducting a thorough investigation. The teacher involved has been placed on administrative leave pending the results of the investigation. Once the investigation is complete, JPS will take the appropriate action. We have reported this matter to our local law enforcement agency. The Department of Human Services and the Mississippi Department of Education has also been notified. The safety and well-being of our students is of utmost importance and a top priority.”
Turnage, a mother of five, was with the Jackson School District since 2015.
