Sixth-grade teacher, 32, charged with rape for 'having sex with 12-year-old boy

Sixth-grade teacher, 32, charged with rape for 'having sex with 12-year-old boy from her class for two years'

A sixth-grade teacher has been charged with repeatedly having sex with a 12-year-old boy from her class.

Tacoma mother-of-two Keshia Shaw, 32, allegedly molested the youngster in her classroom and his own bedroom between April 2007 and December 2008.

Allegations about the Tacoma Gray Middle School maths and science teacher surfaced in May after the boy, now 17, listened to a church sermon about abuse.

He told his mother what had happened, and Shaw now faces five counts of second-degree child rape.

According to the charging documents, Shaw was the boy's sixth-grade teacher and he stayed after class one day at the end of the year to retake a test.

Shaw, who was not wearing underwear, sat in front of the boy as he worked on the exam and, after catching him looking, asked whether he was turned on.

She then took the boy into a room next to her classroom, where they had sex. 'After they finished, the defendant told (the victim) not to tell,' the  documents state. A week later, the boy stayed after school and they had intercourse. Then, in July, Shaw gave the boy a ride home from summer school. They had sex in his bedroom while his mother was at work. After completing sixth grade, the boy went to another school.

He did not see Shaw again until eighth grade, when he ran away from home and went to visit friends at Gray. He had sex with Shaw in her classroom that day. They then went to a bank parking lot, where Shaw gave the boy $80 before performing oral sex on him. That was the last time the victim saw Shaw.

Pierce County prosecutors said Shaw started working as a substitute teacher in Tacoma in 2002 and was hired full-time at Gray in 2005. She reportedly separated from her husband, with whom she had two children aged six and eight, and filed for divorce in February.

Shaw was charged on June 26 and has yet to enter a plea. She is scheduled to appear in court on July 10.

Tacoma Public Schools spokesman Dan Voelpel saidthe district learned of the accusations on May 7 and immediately placed Shaw on paid leave. After her charging, she was placed on unpaid leave.