A 34-year-old female teacher appeared in court Monday after being arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a former student.
Kelly McKenzy Watson, 34, was accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old male student she met in her class at the New Haven residential school in Vista.
Watson was arrested earlier this month and pleaded not guilty Monday in a San Diego courtroom.
According to detectives, Watson was the teenager’s teacher for several semesters at the Vista-based school, from September 2010 until August 2011.
The defense attorney for Watson also told reporters Monday that the mother of the boy wants the charges dropped.
On July 30, Sex Crimes detectives received a tip about possible inappropriate sexual conduct between Watson and her former student. After investigating, detectives determined the pair dated several months ago.
Watson was booked into Las Colinas Detention Facility and is facing charges of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.
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After her arrest, Doreen Quinn, CEO of New Haven Youth and Family Services in Vista, released the following statement via email:
"New Haven was alerted of the arrest of Ms. Kelly Watson, a former New Haven teacher this morning. Ms. Watson was employed at New Haven from September 2010 to August 2011. We were informed this morning that Ms. Watson continued a relationship with a former student after her departure from New Haven. We do not believe, nor have we been informed that the sexual relationship occurred while Ms. Watson was employed at New Haven. We are and will continue to be forthright and cooperative with law enforcement. Like the community, we are dismayed and saddened by the findings that resulted in her arrest today."
Quinn's statement went on to explain that the New Haven school "serves adolescent boys with emotional and learning challenges."
Quinn said Watson was a special education teacher at New Haven school before going to Oceanside Unified School District in August 2011.
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