News
Spanish Teacher Cheryl Reyna Has Lesbian Affair With 16 Year Old Student
Published: Mar 18, 2004 - 12:12 AM
A married teacher at a Queens religious school has been busted for carrying on a seven-month lesbian romance with a teenage student, cops said yesterday.
Cheryl Reyna, 31, a Spanish teacher at Martin Luther High School in Maspeth, was arraigned yesterday in Queens Criminal Court on charges of sodomy, sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.
Cheryl Reyna, 31, a Spanish teacher at Martin Luther High School in Maspeth, was arraigned yesterday in Queens Criminal Court on charges of sodomy, sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.
Reyna, who has taught at the Lutheran school for seven years, was suspended with pay on Friday after the girl told her parents about the alleged affair and they complained to the principal.
"We're shocked, but mainly we're concerned about the well-being of the students, faculty, staff - everybody," said school spokeswoman Kelli Westfal.
Reyna, who has been married for about three years, was arrested Monday. She was free last night on $1,500 bail.
Her lawyer, Richard Leff, denied the charges. "It's sad all around," he said. "She knows the girl. ... She's a good teacher."
The girl's father refused to comment last night.
The teacher allegedly began having sex with the girl last August, when the student was 16, a law enforcement source said.
The relationship began to blossom last spring, during a school trip Reyna led to Spain, the source said.
"They became especially close on that trip," the source said. "They started seeing each other after school more and more. By August, they became sexually involved."
Police believe the girl, a 17-year-old senior, spent a lot of time at Reyna's Maspeth house - but covered up her whereabouts by telling her parents she had to stay late at her after-school job, the source said.
Students said Reyna and the teen were often seen together, but no one suspected them of doing anything inappropriate.
"It's surprising it could happen. We're a Christian community. It's like a family here," said Tara Ciccione, 18, a senior.
But Cheryl Stubbs, 16, a junior who works with Reyna's accuser at an office supply store, said that, in hindsight, the relationship did seem odd.
"We've seen them in a room with the lights off," Cheryl said. "They're always together."
"We're shocked, but mainly we're concerned about the well-being of the students, faculty, staff - everybody," said school spokeswoman Kelli Westfal.
Reyna, who has been married for about three years, was arrested Monday. She was free last night on $1,500 bail.
Her lawyer, Richard Leff, denied the charges. "It's sad all around," he said. "She knows the girl. ... She's a good teacher."
The girl's father refused to comment last night.
The teacher allegedly began having sex with the girl last August, when the student was 16, a law enforcement source said.
The relationship began to blossom last spring, during a school trip Reyna led to Spain, the source said.
"They became especially close on that trip," the source said. "They started seeing each other after school more and more. By August, they became sexually involved."
Police believe the girl, a 17-year-old senior, spent a lot of time at Reyna's Maspeth house - but covered up her whereabouts by telling her parents she had to stay late at her after-school job, the source said.
Students said Reyna and the teen were often seen together, but no one suspected them of doing anything inappropriate.
"It's surprising it could happen. We're a Christian community. It's like a family here," said Tara Ciccione, 18, a senior.
But Cheryl Stubbs, 16, a junior who works with Reyna's accuser at an office supply store, said that, in hindsight, the relationship did seem odd.
"We've seen them in a room with the lights off," Cheryl said. "They're always together."
