A married Florida teacher faces first-degree felony charges after she admitted luring a student to her classroom and having sex with him over a desk. Heather Mashburn-Smith, 37, love-bombed her 17-year-old victim with raunchy messages saying she 'needed him' and 'was wearing a dress with nothing under it,' according to police.
The mother-of-two summoned the boy to her classroom after a weightlifting session and jammed a book in the doorframe so he could slip inside unnoticed. The pair then hugged and kissed before Mashburn-Smith 'laid back on a student's desk' and the pair had unprotected sex, according to an arrest warrant obtained exclusively by the Daily Mail.
Confession and Charges
When confronted about her on-campus romps at Port Charlotte High School, the mousy blonde educator is said to have confessed to cops: 'I made a mistake.' She was arrested Wednesday and is charged with unlawful activity with a minor, enhanced to a first-degree felony because of her position of authority. If found guilty, Mashburn-Smith faces up to 30 years behind bars under the criminal punishment code in Florida, where the age of consent is 18.
She was suspended from her job, having taught the victim – who cannot be identified because of his age – since he was in the ninth grade.
Details of the Alleged Relationship
According to the six-page warrant, the school in Port Charlotte, southwest Florida, received an anonymous email saying Mashburn-Smith was having a sexual relationship with a student. The tip also alerted staff to messages circulating on a football team group chat that talked of students 'wanting to run a train' – slang for group sex – on her.
Deputies were alerted on April 29 and the boy confirmed the pair had twice had sex over the previous two months. He told investigators that when he tried to break things off, Mashburn-Smith got 'angry' and begged him to marry her when he turned 18.
The four-to-five-week tryst allegedly began when he sent the teacher jokes via Snapchat and Instagram and complimented her as 'pretty.' 'He said it became flirtatious between them and he would go to her classroom often to talk,' the warrant says. Mashburn-Smith texted the student two to three weeks ago to ask him to visit her classroom. 'She told him she was wearing a dress with nothing under it and for him to come see her after weightlifting,' the warrant states.
Classroom Encounters
'He said Heather would leave a book in her classroom door so that he could get in from the outside.' Mashburn-Smith told the boy they didn't need to use contraception because her 'tubes were tied,' according to the warrant. She's said to have warned the teen she could get in 'big trouble' if he blabbed to any of his friends.
The boy returned to Mashburn-Smith's classroom for a second hookup and she offered to perform oral sex on him for the first time, it's alleged. 'He stated he wasn't comfortable but he let her. She pulled up a chair, pulled his pants down,' the warrant says.
A week later the boy claims he told Mashburn-Smith what they were doing was wrong and that he 'felt like crap' afterwards. 'Heather told him she was not in a good marriage and that she wanted to leave her husband and be with him once he turned 18,' the warrant states.
Ongoing Contact and Arrest
Mashburn-Smith was allegedly 'saying things like, come to my classroom, I need you, I'm falling for you and that she wanted to marry him and leave her husband.' The boy tried to block her but the teacher continued to contact him via Snapchat, according to the warrant. He was able to describe several of her tattoos – a heart and a sunset – to investigators.
When confronted by cops, Mashburn-Smith is said to have admitted the fling and said she felt 'special' and 'desired' when the student complimented her. She told deputies she was remorseful about the sex because she was married. 'She knew she was an adult and needed to stop it,' the warrant adds.
Mashburn-Smith is currently locked up at the Charlotte County Jail in Punta Gorda and is due to be arraigned Friday May 1. She cuts a forlorn figure in her mugshot, as she looks straight ahead with a blank stare on her face. She has several nose piercings.
'Teachers are meant to be people that students can trust and seek out for mentorship, guidance, and encouragement,' said Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell. 'This individual took advantage of that vulnerability and preyed on one of the people she was entrusted to protect.'
Superintendent of Schools Mark Vianello said Mashburn-Smith was placed on administrative leave when the allegations surfaced. 'The actions of this individual are a direct violation of the duty every educator owes to students and families,' he added. 'We will not tolerate anything that compromises student safety.'
