A former Two Rivers teacher will spend time in jail after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a student
Fulfilling our obligation: This report is part of the Herald Times Reporter's mission to follow criminal cases from arrest to their conclusion.
MANITOWOC - A former Spanish teacher at Two Rivers High School was convicted of two misdemeanor counts of sexual intercourse with a child age 16 or older during a plea hearing Wednesday.
Rebecca L. Kilps, a 35-year-old Manitowoc woman, was originally charged with three felony counts of sexual assault of a student by school staff. In a plea agreement, two of those counts were changed to misdemeanors and the other felony charge was kept with a deferred judgment agreement.
In a deferred judgement agreement, the court does not enter a judgment of conviction against the defendant despite the guilty or no contest plea. That agreement is held on a number of conditions set by the court and may be revoked at any time if the defendant fails to meet those conditions.
In a statement by Kilps during the hearing on Wednesday, she said the victim was an innocent bystander "during a time of my life of deep sadness ... he never deserved to experience what he did at such a young age, especially from a teacher who he trusted and turned to for guidance."
Kilps was arrested in May after it was revealed she was maintaining a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student. In separate statements to the police, both Kilps and the victim admitted to having sexual encounters with one another.
Kilps' husband had called the police before Kilps was arrested, and claimed he had looked through her phone and found messages between Kilps and the victim "talking about a future together and saying they love each other," according to the criminal complaint.
Kilps said she has had no other inappropriate relationships with students and has since resigned from her position at the Two Rivers School District and relinquished her teaching license.
"My guilty and shameful heart has been carrying around the burden on my actions for what seems like an eternity," Kilps said Wednesday. "It's with that time that I've been able to process the true gravity of my decision and the hurt that I have caused to so many."
On the two misdemeanor counts of sexual intercourse with a child 16 or older, Kilps' sentence was withheld and she was placed on probation for three years.
As a condition of her probation, Kilps will serve three months in county jail, with another six months stayed.
Other conditions of her probation include continuing with counseling, completing a psychosexual evaluation, having no contact with the victim or anyone younger than 18, except for her own child.
Contact reporter Alisa Schafer at aschafer@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @AlisaMSchafer.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Former Two Rivers teacher Rebecca Kilps gets jail for sex with student
