Ex-Middle School Teacher Gets 30 Years for Sexually Abusing 14-Year-Old in Classroom and Her Car

A former Maryland middle school teacher who repeatedly sexually abused a 14-year-old student has learned her fate.

Melissa Curtis, 32, of Upper Marlboro, was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Friday, Nov. 15. However, a Montgomery County judge suspended the majority of the sentence, allowing Curtis to serve 12 months behind bars and five years of supervised probation, a spokesperson for the Montgomery County State Attorney’s Office confirmed in a statement shared with PEOPLE on Tuesday, Nov. 19.

Following her release, Curtis will be required to register as a sex offender for 25 years, per the statement. She will also not be permitted to have unsupervised contact with minors other than her own children. Curtis pleaded guilty to “three counts of third-degree sex offense” on June 20, the statement reads.

An investigation began in October 2023 after the now-adult victim came forward to authorities about the sexual abuse, per a previous statement shared by the Montgomery County Police Department.

He said the abuse began in 2015 when Curtis was 22 and he was a 14-year-old 8th grade student at Montgomery Village Middle School, where she was a teacher, the MCPD said.

In charging documents previously obtained by DC News Now, the victim claimed Curtis sexually abused him in a classroom, in a car and at her mother’s home and at his house. The victim also said that Curtis had sex with him more than 20 times.

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A warrant was issued for Curtis’ arrest on Oct. 31, 2023, and she turned herself in to authorities on Nov. 7, 2023, per the MCPD statement.

Curtis had been a teacher for approximately two years in Montgomery County and had also taught at Lakelands Park Middle School.

A spokesperson told Fox 5 DC that Curtis left Montgomery County Public Schools in 2017.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.