Queens teacher busted for groping and sexting
A Queens teacher is accused of groping a student at his high school and sexting with another, police said Friday.
Shannon Hall, 31, was charged with sexual abuse, forcible touching, aggravated harassment and endangering the welfare of a child for the two incidents, cops said.
“I want to be with you,” Hall texted a 14-year-old female student at Jamaica Gateway to the Sciences High School (photo) on May 24, according to police and court papers. The girl had texted with Hall in the past, prosecutors said.
When the teacher messaged her, his name appeared as “Mr. Hall.”
The next day at school, the teen asked Hall what he meant by his text. He apologized and claimed he was drunk, prosecutors said.
But the alleged sexting didn’t stop there. Over the next week, Hall allegedly sent “multiple text messages” expressing his desire to kiss, grope and have sex with the student, prosecutors said. He also said he wanted to “walk on the beach with her” and “smoke with her,” court papers claim.
He added that, “If she showed anyone the messages she would be dead,” the criminal complaint alleged.
Hall also said he was jealous of the teen’s boyfriend and that she should look out for him “the way that he looks out for her.”
On May 31, Hall again apologized for the sexually charged messages, claiming once again that he was drunk when he sent them, prosecutors said.
School officials and police launched an investigation into the allegations when the teen alerted someone at the school about the texts, police sources said.
At the same time, accusations surfaced that Hall touched another student’s breasts.
Hall was released without bail during a brief arraignment hearing Friday morning.
A spokeswoman for the city Department of Education said that Hall has been “reassigned away from the school and students pending the outcome of the arrest.”
“If convicted , we will pursue his termination,” spokeswoman Jenna Lyle said. “This behavior is completely unacceptable and will be fully investigated.”