A former Arkansas teacher was sentenced to serve the next 13 years in federal prison for transporting a minor across state lines for the purpose of unlawful sexual activity.
Heather Hare, 33, of Conway, was sentenced by United States District Judge Lee P. Rudofsky on Wednesday.
The investigation into Hare revealed that Hare taught Family Consumer Science classes at Bryant High School and met the minor victim on the first day of their senior year.
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Hare began one-on-one counseling sessions with the minor victim, eventually giving them her personal phone number and primarily communicating with them through Instagram and Snapchat.
Hare later told the minor victim that she had a dream of them having sex and gave the victim her home address in Conway.
The minor victim and Hare engaged in sexual activity between 20 to 30 times throughout the 2021-2022 school term, including multiple times at her Conway residence, in her vehicle, and in her classroom and parking lots at Bryant High School.
Between April 21 and April 24, 2022, Hare was the sponsor and chaperone for a field trip to Washington, D.C., as part of an extracurricular activity related to the Family Consumer Science courses Hare taught.
During the field trip, Hare and the minor victim engaged in unlawful sexual activity to which she pleaded guilty.
Hare was indicted on August 1, 2023, and charged with one count of interstate/foreign travel for prostitution/sexual activity by coercion and one count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. In exchange for her guilty plea, the remaining charge was dismissed.
Hare was also sentenced to serve a lifetime of supervised release. Hare faced a maximum sentence of not less than 10 years imprisonment and up to life imprisonment, and not less than five years of supervised release for transportation of a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity.
“Teachers who have sex with their minor students should take note of today’s sentence for Ms. Hare which reflects the consequences of abusing her position of trust and taking advantage of the vulnerability of this minor to repeatedly engage in unlawful sexual activity,” Ross said. “Our office will continue to hold accountable those who are in a position of trust that target children and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law, as evidenced by Judge Rudofsky sentencing Ms. Hare to 13 years in federal prison.”
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“The FBI takes crimes against children very seriously,” said Special Agent in Charge Alicia D. Corder, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Little Rock Field Office. “Today’s sentencing shows that the federal government will continuously work to identify, investigate, and prosecute individuals who abuse their position of trust and authority to exploit children in our community.”
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