A substitute teacher banned from Little Rock Catholic High School for Boys since October has been accused of having sex with a student.
Erica Lauer Suskie, 43, surrendered to North Little Rock police on a charge of first-degree sexual assault Tuesday morning. She immediately appeared in North Little Rock District Court with an attorney and pleaded not guilty to the offense, which is a Class A felony.
Suskie was released on her own recognizance after the hearing.
According to a police affidavit, Suskie had a sexual relationship with a boy she’d asked to tutor her son. She and the boy had sex at her home during the first tutoring session in January or February of last year, and the relationship continued until October, the affidavit states.
Catholic High School Principal Steve Straessle said Tuesday he reported claims of misconduct to a state child abuse hot line in October, as required by law. He said he also notified students’ parents and banned Suskie from campus.
Arkansas State Police and North Little Rock police said the agencies began an investigation Oct. 26. North Little Rock police detective Ashley Noel reported the boy had shown friends and family members a photograph and text messages to prove his relationship with Suskie.
The boy’s mother, according to the affidavit, told police Suskie “was one of her best friends and a person she trusted to care for her children.”
The boy’s name and the names of his family members were redacted in the court filing because of state privacy laws.
Suskie appeared in court Tuesday with her husband Paul, a former North Little Rock city attorney and former chairman of the Arkansas Public Service Commission. He ran for state attorney general as a Democrat in 2006.
The Suskies left the hearing quickly and didn’t speak to reporters.
The age of sexual consent in Arkansas is 16.
Under state law, first-degree sexual assault occurs when a temporary caretaker or “person in a position of trust or authority” over a minor “engages in sexual intercourse or deviate sexual activity with a minor.” It’s punishable by up to 30 years in prison and a maximum fine of $15,000.
Suskie has no prior criminal history, according to court records.
Her next court date was set for March 16.
According to a police affidavit, Suskie had a sexual relationship with a boy she’d asked to tutor her son.