Elite private school teacher denies sex with boy student; slapped with seven sexual-related charges

Los Angeles police arrested a private school biology teacher and accused her of having sex with a 16-year-old student last month. On Friday, prosecution formally charged her with unlawful sex with a student, but the suspect continued to deny the allegations on Friday after a judge read her charges aloud to her.

Canyon News reports that according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Aimee Palmitessa, 45, a married teacher, worked at the prestigious Brentwood School in L.A. for nine years. Her victim, whose name is disclosed due to his age, was a student in one of her high school classes.

The criminal complaint read that between between June 12 and August 11, Palmitessa had sexual encounters with the boy. Eventually, the teen boy told police about the alleged incidents, which sparked an investigation into the claims. On August 18, police arrested Palmitessa and booked her into the Los Angeles County jail on a $230,000 bail.

“We were shocked and distressed to receive the news of these allegations,” Dr. Mike Reira, Head of the Brentwood School, said on August 20. “As always, our primary concern is the safety, health, and well-being of our students. To that end, we will do everything we can to cooperate with the official police investigation.”

She’s charged with “seven counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, two counts each of sodomy and sexual penetration by foreign object of a person under the age of 18 and one count of oral copulation of a person under 18,” according to Canyon News.

Palmitessa, who’s currently on administrative leave from the school, remains out on bail while awaiting trial. She’s scheduled for a preliminary hearing October 16. If convicted, she faces up to 10 years and four months in prison.

Check back with CrimeOnline as additional information becomes available.

[Featured Image: The Brentwood School Flyer]