Monday, January 05, 2009

Age of Consent Law on Trial

This from the Paducah Sun (subscription):

Neelley, Vannerson attorneys seek exemption
from new sexual consent law
Jason Neelley listens to testimony during his preliminary hearing Tuesday in McCracken District Court. Neelly is charged with sexually abusing a 17-year-old student while he was employed at Lone Oak High School.

Attorneys for two people in court Tuesday questioned whether a new law raising the age of sexual consent in certain cases should apply to their clients.

The law, which took effect in July, raises the age of consent from 16 to 18 when the sexual contact is with an adult in a position of authority or special trust.

In the first case, former Lone Oak High School teacher Jason Neelley, 34, is charged with sexually abusing a 17-year-old student who attended the school. In the second case, Jeannie Vannerson, 33, of Kevil is charged with sexually abusing a 16-year-old male family friend who frequently stayed at her house.

Neelley and Vannerson had preliminary hearings Tuesday in McCracken District Court. Judge Tony Kitchen found probable cause to send both cases to a grand jury and set a return court date for March 20...

...Detectives arrested Neelley Dec. 15 after the student agreed to secretly record a conversation with Neelley in which they talked about her performing a sex act on him in his pickup truck during school hours Dec. 3, Hayden said. The encounter occurred while Neelley was driving on Lovelaceville Road after they met in a church parking lot, Hayden said. ...

...In the Vannerson case, McCracken County Sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Matt Carter testified that Vannerson and the 16-year-old had three sexual encounters. Her husband called 911 and reported his suspicions about 4:30 a.m. Dec. 21.

The 16-year-old told detectives that he spent most of his weekends at the Vannersons and kept a toothbrush and clothing at their home. At one point he had planned to move in with them but did not after his grandmother, his legal
guardian, objected. ...

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think they need to hang them both especially the woman who claims to be a mother figure what mother sleeps with their son. And, come between her son's friend and him she was thinking of herself not her 3 kids and husband the boys have to see each at school plus, them kids have to go to school and all their friends seen and heard about this she also took that 16 year old boys youth from him she took advantage of him and his grand parents trusted her this has been going on longer than a month. She does not need to be around her kids or any kids lock them both up and throw away the keys.

Anonymous said...

I think it is narrow minded to say something as stupid as "hang them." THESE ARE NORMAL SEXUAL DESIRES! Blame a country where we think teenagers dont have sex. Fire the teacher, definately. These adults did nothing wrong other than fall prey to the sex police.

Anonymous said...

umm i know both the teacher and the girl that were involved with this act. from what i hear from her closer friends, she was pissed that he had been trying to call it off because he wanted to mend things with his wife and the crumbling relationship. although i know neelley is a creeper, the girl should have been shamed publicly because she was more than aware of what was going on too. not only that but her "whore" status at the school should have been made public. they both have to understand that they screwed up.

Anonymous said...

The Kids in these cases are victims,It is up to the adults to say No this isn't appropriate as they are the older, the more mature and the wiser of the two. The age of consent should be changed to 18 in all cases to stop this misuse of teenagers by grown adult women and men