It’s not every day we hear about a female martial arts instructor stepping out of bounds with a student but this is exactly what happened in the case of Ohio martial artist Erin Stephens.
Stephens was indicted by a Lorain County grand jury after allegedly having a consensual sexual relationship with one of her teenage students.
31-year-old Erin Stephens taught karate when a 19-year-old man came to the Police Department to report an inappropriate relationship that allegedly occurred while he was a minor.
Investigators learned that Stephens allegedly had a consensual sexual relationship with him sometime from the time he was 16 through 17.
Erin Stephens is charged with three counts of sexual battery, according to a press release from the Avon Lake Police Department.
Age of consent in Ohio is 16 however Ohio Revised Code prohibits this conduct if the offender is a coach, instructor, or person with disciplinary control over the minor.
She posted bond at $10,000 and it’s yet unknown when she’ll appear in court.
Should she be convicted, she could face up to 15 years in prison.
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