A high school teacher in Oklahoma was arrested for allegedly having a threesome in her home with a male student and a female colleague.
Joyce Churchwell, 40, a volleyball coach at Berryhill High School in Tulsa, contacted the unnamed teenager on Snapchat last school year and sent him naked photos of herself, according to the local sheriff’s office. She eventually invited him to her home to have group sex while her husband was away, authorities said.
The student, 18, “admitted that this encounter had taken place at the teacher’s home along with another adult female — a former teacher at the district,” Casey Roebuck, a spokeswoman for the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, told News on 6.
Churchwell, a mother of two, turned herself in Tuesday after authorities issued a warrant for her arrest. She was charged with first-degree rape and held on a $5,000 bond.
A Twitter account that appears to belong to Churchwell makes frequent reference to the Bible and high school sports.
The other woman said to have been involved in the threesome has since left the school. She has not been named or charged.
The investigation of Joyce Churchwell
Amid rumors at Berryhill High School about the alleged abuse, someone last month tipped off the school resource officer, who alerted police. An investigation was then opened.
Authorities believe there may be additional victims. Investigators found that Churchwell had messaged another student, who did not reciprocate.
Churchwell was placed on a leave of absence, the school said in a statement.
“The Berryhill School District takes the safety of its students very seriously and does everything it can to provide a safe learning environment,” the school said. “The district is currently cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation of these allegations and will take appropriate action when the investigation is completed.”
*story by Pluralist