A teacher who was married got pregnant by a student and has been sentenced to jail for engaging in sexual acts with two teenagers, including encouraging unprotected sex with one of them. Julie Rizzitello, 37, was given a 10-year jail term after being found guilty of sexually assaulting the students.

Rizzitello, a mother of two, had sexual encounters with the teens, with one resulting in her pregnancy after she allegedly persuaded the student to have unprotected sex on her birthday. She terminated the pregnancy through an abortion.

The court learned that Rizzitello initiated a sexual relationship with the first victim when he was a freshman at Wall Township High School in New Jersey. She met him during lunch in her classroom and engaged in multiple sexual encounters between 2017 and 2018.

Judge Jill Grace accused Rizzitello of grooming her students and causing psychological harm to the victims. One victim dropped out of college due to the distress caused by the ordeal.

Rizzitello also engaged in a sexual relationship with an 18-year-old junior student between April and June 2024. Prosecutors revealed that the illicit acts took place in various locations, including Rizzitello’s family home and a bagel shop owned by her family.

Following an anonymous tip to school officials, Rizzitello contacted both victims to erase any evidence of her wrongdoing before her arrest in July 2024. She pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault charges and was prohibited from teaching, required to register as a sex offender, and prohibited from contacting the victims.

Wall Township Police Chief Sean O’Halloran commended the victims for their bravery and condemned Rizzitello for betraying the trust of the victims and the school community.