A school guidance counsellor and volleyball coach has been taken into custody after allegedly engaging in a sex act with an underage student at her school.
Jessica Patrick Finley, 29, was charged with sexual misconduct with a minor who is also a student, according to McDowell County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina, US.
Booking information online shows she was taken into custody at the McDowell County Detention Facility on Wednesday, February 28, at around 11.25pm. Her charge is listed as a sex act with a student.
McDowell County Schools released a statement on Thursday, Thursday 29, explaining Finley was a guidance counsellor and volleyball coach at McDowell High School.
The school board said she “immediately resigned from her position” after being charged with sexual misconduct.
The statement also said the student involved is a “minor child”. The age of consent in North Carolina is 16-years-old.
The statement read: “McDowell County Schools received information from the McDowell County Sheriff’s Office and the State Bureau of Investigation, leading to charges of sexual misconduct involving Jessica Finley and a minor child.
“Ms. Finley, a Guidance Counselor and Volleyball Coach for McDowell High School, immediately resigned from her position. McDowell County Schools recognize the seriousness of the allegations Ms. Finley is facing, and the district will fully cooperate with the McDowell County Sheriff’s Office and the State Bureau of Investigation.
“Due to the active investigation, no further information from McDowell County Schools will be provided. Anyone with information regarding this matter should contact the McDowell County Sheriff’s Office [sic].”
Authorities are now investigating the allegations further.
The ABC 13 news channel reports Finley is being held on $600,000 bond.
