Member Since: 9/3/2011
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Teacher arrested for 13 month relationship with student
Quote:
Criminal charges have been filed against a former Franklin Regional School District teacher who is accused of having inappropriate contact with a female student while he worked for the district.
Bret Anthony Thompson, 42, of Penn Hills, was charged today, Wednesday, with eight counts of institutional sexual assault, one count of endangering the welfare of children, one count of corruption of minors, two counts of unlawful contact with a minor as a third-degree felony, three counts of unlawful contact with a minor as a second-degree felony, 15 counts of criminal use of a communication facility and three counts of photographing, filming or depicting on the computer a sex act with a child.
Murrysville police accuse Thompson, a former fitness and wellness teacher, of having a 13-month sexual relationship with one of his students, dating back to when the girl was 16. The Murrysville Star does not identify victims in sexual crimes cases.
He was arraigned today before Magisterial Judge Charles Conway.
According to the affidavit of probable cause filed by Murrysville police and Westmoreland County detectives, Thompson began a sexual relationship with the teen in May of 2011. Police allege that the pair had sexual intercourse and oral sex at least eight times on the Franklin Regional campus and additional encounters in Allegheny, Cumberland and Westmoreland counties, including at Boyce Park in Monroeville, Duff Park in Murrysville and other locations in Murrysville.
Thompson was released on a $5,000 unsecured bond. Under the terms of the bond, he is not allowed unsupervised contact with minors other than his child. Also, he is not permitted on the Franklin Regional campus and he is allowed no contact with students
Thompson told Conway he resigned from the district since the investigation began in June.
"Protecting the safety and well being of the students at the Franklin Regional School District is our first priority," said Shelley Shaneyfelt, director of instructional services and public relations for the district.
"We have been explicitly following our policies and procedures following notification of the allegations that have been made concerning one of our former teachers. We immediately notified the members of the Murrysville Police Department and other investigative authorities and are fully cooperating with them during their investigation of this situation.
"Mr. Thompson is no longer an employee of the Franklin Regional School District. We will continue to educate our staff and our students about appropriate behavioral expectations and the steps to take when one's safety or security has been compromised. As this is a personnel matter, we have no further comment at this time."
Thompson has a preliminary hearing on the charges scheduled for Tuesday in front of Conway.
Thompson was the eighth-grade basketball coach at the middle school. Often called "Coach T" by students, he taught ninth- and 10th-grade fitness, ninth-grade wellness and several sports electives for juniors and seniors. He joined the district in 1999 and has coached basketball for both seventh and ninth graders.
Thompson is married and has a son. According to a Franklin Regional webpage that has since been removed, Thompson is a roller coaster fanatic, has a first-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and is an avid weight-lifter and bowler.
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My school's a damn mess. 6 deaths and two teacher-student sexual relationships, 2 bomb threats within a year.
Lord please get me out of here. 
Yay, Panther Pride 
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