By PAUL THOMPSON
A female track coach has been arrested after allegedly having a sexual relationship with a 17 year old she was coaching. Lisa Harroff, 39, was held after the teen's parents told police their son was involved in an improper relationship. The teen had confessed to his parents he had been having sex with his coach for several months. Harroff, 39, was the cross country coach for the Neches Independent School District in East Texas. Investigators said the pair had sex at Harroff's home in Palestine, East Texas, for a considerable period of time. The affair came to light after the teen told his parents.
'I’m not clear why he came forward to his guardians, but he was forthcoming with us in the investigation,' said Anderson County Sheriff Greg Taylor. Harroff has been suspended from her position as a math teacher at Neches Middle School. Although the age of consent is 17 in Texas, relationships between educators and students is illegal and considered a felony offence. 'You know humans do make mistakes, but sometimes mistakes have serious consequences and this is one of those,' Sheriff Taylor said. As part of their investigation, police carried out a search of Harroff's home and took away physical evidence.
School chiefs have launched their own investigation into the alleged affair. Superintendent Randy Snider said the results of the investigation will be forwarded to the Texas Education Agency for possible action against Harroff’s teaching certification. Harroff was charged with an improper relationship between and teacher and a student.
The charge carried a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail.
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