A former teacher who gave birth to a child fathered by her 13-year-old former student has pleaded guilty to second degree endangering the welfare of a child with sexual conduct, according to Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey H. Sutherland.
Laura Caron, 36, faces five years in state prison under a plea agreement. She first met the boy when she taught him and his brother at Middle Township Elementary School in Cape May Court House.
The family became close with Caron and allowed their sons and daughter to sleep at her home several nights a week, the New York Post reports.
Relationship began when pupil was 11
Prosecutors say the teacher had “inappropriate sexual relations” with her former pupil in a relationship that began when he was just 11 in 2016 and continued until he was 15.
Caron became pregnant when the lad was 13 and gave birth to their daughter in 2019, keeping the secret buried for years.
In December 2024 the boy’s father noticed an uncanny resemblance between Caron’s child, himself and his son in a Facebook photo.
Authorities uncover grim details
Authorities uncovered details including allegations that the victim’s brother once witnessed Caron sexually assaulting his sleeping sibling.
The victim, now about 21, has defended Caron and said he was the one who “made the first move” in the alleged sexual relationship.
“They need to drop all charges. I wasn’t groomed or raped or manipulated by her. She never initiated anything,” he told the Daily Mail. “I started everything. If it was up to me she wouldn’t have been in jail.”
Plea agreement terms
Caron was charged with aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child in January this year.
She must also surrender her teaching license and all future public employment. She will undergo an evaluation to determine whether her behaviour is repetitive or compulsive, a finding that could affect her sentence.
