A Towson High School teacher has been charged with sexually abusing a student, Baltimore County police said Monday.
Richard James Hanna, 36, of Havre de Grace is charged with sexual abuse of a minor, second-degree child abuse and a fourth-degree sex offense.
Police said they launched an investigation in May after learning of an "inappropriate relationship" between a teacher and a student at the school.
Hanna has been with Baltimore County's public schools for eight years and taught science at Towson, according to county schools spokesman Mychael Dickerson. He was placed on administrative leave in May when the allegations surfaced, Dickerson said.
The 17-year-old student told police Hanna drove her home and to her work, and took her to parks, including Cromwell Valley Park and Wyman Park, as well as to the Roland Park neighborhood and the Loch Raven Reservoir. Their relationship eventually turned physical, according to police.
The girl told police she and the teacher kissed and that he touched her in inappropriate places over her clothes.
Police reviewed emails between Hanna and the student, which included "references to kissing and sexualized writing," according to police.
Online court records show Hanna was released Sunday on $10,000 bail. He could not be reached for comment Monday, and no one answered the door at the Havre de Grace residence listed in court records as his home address. No attorney for him was listed in online court records.
"The allegations and charges are very disturbing and our main concern is with the well-being of the student and her family," Dickerson said in a statement. "This alleged behavior will not be tolerated in Baltimore County Public Schools, and due to the seriousness of the allegations, the principal and our human resources staff took immediate action once notified."
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