Teacher accused of having a child with student released from New Jersey jail as case proceeds

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Wednesday, January 22, 2025
Elementary school teacher accused of having a child with student released from New Jersey jail
The former New Jersey elementary school teacher accused of sexually assaulting and having a child with a student appeared in court on Tuesday.

MIDDLE TWP., N.J. (WPVI) -- The New Jersey elementary school teacher accused of sexually assaulting and having a child with a student appeared in court on Tuesday.

A judge ruled that 34-year-old Laura Caron be released from jail with some restrictions as her case proceeds.

Caron was a 5th-grade teacher at Middle Township Elementary School for the past 11 years.

RELATED: South Jersey elementary school teacher accused of having sexual relationship, child with student

She is accused of sexually assaulting the victim inside her home from 2016 to 2020, beginning when the child was 11 years old.

Investigators allege that Caron and the victim had a daughter together, saying the baby was born in 2019 when the victim in this case was 13 years old.

The allegations were brought to light when the victim's father made a social media post in December 2024 saying Caron's 5-year-old child looked very similar to him and his son, according to police.

Caron was arrested back on January 15.

Her attorney, John Tumelty, claims the state made a "conscious decision" to make an arrest before DNA testing was complete, adding that there's no current evidence that proves Caron's daughter is related to the victim.

"And only after the arrest, they get search warrants for her DNA. They got the victim's DNA, voluntarily from him, and they have a search warrant for my client's five-year-old daughter for her DNA. And that will take months for that evidence, that biological evidence, to be obtained, sent to the lab, and processed," said Tumelty.

After her arrest, Middle Township School District Superintendent Dr. David Salvo released a statement saying, "When the district was first advised of the allegations, the staff member was immediately placed on and continues to be on paid administrative leave."

The parents of the victim allegedly told officers they became friends with Caron, which ultimately led to them even allowing their boys and daughter to stay at her home at times.

During her first appearance hearing last week, the judge identified Caron as a "resource family parent" for the children.

The visits began one to two nights a week, but the children stayed with Caron permanently from 2016 to 2020, authorities revealed in court documents.

Caron lived at Cape May Court House home with her mother who was there the "entire time" the children were at the house, according to Tumelty. However, there's no evidence to suggest she was aware the alleged abuse was happening.

Judge Christopher Gibson ordered that Caron is not allowed to have any contact with the school district, the victim, or the victim's family. She must also comply with the state when contacting her daughter.

Caron, who is a native of Bucks County and played basketball for Cabrini University, is scheduled to be back in court on February 25 at 9 a.m.

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