A defense lawyer for Laurie S. Cook last night elicited testimony from the mother of a teen-ager who accused the former Northeast High School science teacher of sexually abusing him that he was a deeply troubled youth who once tried to kill himself.
At first, the mother described her son as "bright" and capable of doing good schoolwork.
But she said under questioning that while he was in elementary school, he was referred for psychological counseling after reporting to school administrators that he had attempted suicide.
She also said that while he was in ninth grade, she received at least one call a week from a teacher about his disruptive behavior in class.
Last night's session was the fourth in Ms. Cook's hearing before a school-board appointed hearing examiner at Board of Education headquarters on Riva Road in Annapolis. Although acquitted nearly a year ago in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court of sexually abusing the youth, she is now fighting to retain her job.
She is accused of having a sexual relationship with the student, having inappropriate contacts and conversations on sexual topics with his family members, and writing passes for students to miss assigned classes for inappropriate reasons. She also is accused of general unprofessional conduct.
The mother of the youth who has accused Ms. Cook of initiating a sexual relationship with him also testified last night that Ms. Cook was at her home sometimes as often as five times a week during the 1991-1992 school year.
Two neighbors corroborated the mother's testimony, saying they had observed Ms. Cook's car in front of the family's home on many occasions.
Both said they teased the boy after seeing him get out of her car on several occasions. One neighbor testified that she saw the youth washing Ms. Cook's car while the teacher sunbathed in his yard. She told him, "I think your teacher has the hots for you," she said.
The boy's mother said that Ms. Cook routinely brought her son home after football practice and stayed for dinner.
The mother said that on one occasion Ms. Cook asked her if her son used condoms. "She asked me if he had a girlfriend, and if he used condoms," the woman said. "I assumed he was" because she had advised him to do so in the past during discussions of safe sex.
When asked by Ms. Cook's lawyer if she thought the question about condoms was strange, she replied, "Not from his science teacher."
Ms. Cook's lawyer, M. Cristina Gutierrez, focused her questions on the boy's size, noting he was "big for his age" even in elementary school. She said he had "an early puberty" and dealt inappropriately with his relationships with girls.
The hearing is scheduled to resume at 4 p.m. Tuesday, when the youth's mother will return to the witness stand. The school board is not scheduled to hear final arguments until Jan. 18.