Wall teacher Julie Rizzitello accused of having sex with student faces more charges
FREEHOLD — Additional charges have been filed against the former Wall High School teacher accused of having sex with one of her students, it was revealed in court Tuesday.
Julie Rizzitello, 36, of Brick, had been scheduled to have a hearing Tuesday to determine if she will remain in the Monmouth County Jail to await trial.
Her attorney, Francis Hodgson, asked that the hearing be adjourned in light of the additional charges.
Superior Court Judge Marc C. Lemiuex, assignment judge for Monmouth County, said two new complaints have been filed against Rizzitello -- one out of Wall in Monmouth County and another out of Ocean County involving the same victim, but a different time frame than that specified in the previous complaints.
Keri-Leigh Schaefer, assistant Monmouth County prosecutor, said the new complaint out of Wall alleges witness tampering on July 2.
She did not say what is alleged in the new complaint out of Ocean County.
However, a spokesman for the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office said afterward that the new Ocean County complaint charges Rizzitello with another count of sexual assault.
LeMieux granted the adjournment and rescheduled Rizzitello's detention hearing for July 23.
Rizzitello had previously been charged with two counts of sexual assault, three counts of criminal sexual contact and one count of witness tampering.
She has been held in the Monmouth County Jail without bail on those charges since her arrest July 3. Earlier that week, with an investigation underway, she resigned from her job as a teacher at Wall High School.
The initial investigation revealed Rizzitello engaged in various sexual acts with the victim on multiple occasions in at least three jurisdictions -- Belmar and Wall in Monmouth County and Brick in Ocean County -- and that the criminal conduct occurred between April and mid-June, while the victim was her student.
Police documents allege Rizzitello had sex with the victim in his car, sent him nude photos of herself and exchanged numerous sexual photos and communications with him. The documents also allege she contacted the victim on July 2 and told him to delete those communications from his phone.
The victim was over 18 during the time frame alleged in the original complaints. Even though he was not a minor, the alleged activity is still criminal because she was his teacher at the time.
Christopher Swendeman, spokesman for Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago, said the new sexual assault complaint filed in Ocean County relates to activity that occurred before the victim attained the age of 18.
The previous charges filed in Ocean County have been transferred to Monmouth County, Lemieux said.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said Tuesday that the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office also will prosecute the latest Ocean County complaint.
Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues, unsolved mysteries and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: New charges filed against Wall NJ teacher in student sex case
