N.J. teacher pleads not guilty to sex with her male students

A New Jersey high school teacher pleaded not guilty Monday on an indictment alleging she had sex with six male students, reports CBS New York.

Nicole Dufault, 35, was charged with aggravated sexual assault and child endangerment in a 40-count indictment handed up in February. She pleaded not guilty to the new indictment Monday, according to the station.

Authorities have alleged that 14- and 15-year-old boys were sexually assaulted many times in 2013 and 2014 by the language arts teacher. They say some of the sex acts occurred on school property and in her car.

Last month, her attorney claimed that Dufault was being coerced by her students, reported CBS New York.

Sources tell CBS New York that Dufault was captured on video in a sexual act with two of the students. The same source claims Dufault was forced into committing the acts and that her family was threatened.

The students were part of the program called “Bridge to Success” at Columbia High School in Maplewood, according to the station. She had been at the school for several years before being suspended without pay after her arrest last September.

Dufault remains free on $500,000 bail, according to CBS New York.

“We believe, as I have asserted before, my client is the victim of a certain form of sexual assault and we stand by that,” her attorney, Timothy Smith, said last month, according to the station.

The attorney has also said the charges “run contrary to [Dufault’s] commendable background and unblemished work performance.”

Source: cbsnews