California 'Teacher of the Year' sentenced to 30 years for sexual abuse of students

A former California Instructor of the Year was sentenced on Friday to years in prison for sexually abusing two of her sixth-grade students Jacqueline Ma pleaded guilty in February to two counts of forcible lewd acts on a child one count of lewd acts on a child and one count of possessing child sexual abuse material the San Diego County District Attorney s Office noted in a news release This defendant violated the trust she had with her students in the the greater part extreme and traumatic way practicable and her actions are despicable District Attorney Summer Stephan declared Her casualties will have to deal with a lifetime of negative effects and her -year sentence is appropriate Ma taught at Lincoln Acres Elementary School in National City and was the former San Diego County Instructor of the Year for the - school year LUXURY REAL ESTATE MOGULS HIT WITH NEW CLAIMS IN SEX TRAFFICKING CASEMa was allowed to address the constituents before the judge handed down her sentence the San Diego Union-Tribune released I abused my authority I exerted my power and control over them and I deceived them Ma declared while handcuffed and crying in court Boys this age should be playing outside feeling carefree I ripped away their childhood Ma apologized to the casualties and their families calling her crimes selfish and that she had disgraced the teaching profession I lied to their faces while secretly abusing their sons Ma mentioned I just pray for extra protection and strength for all those affected Ma had groomed young boys with gifts food and special attention and even completed their homework for them the district attorney s office revealed Ma was arrested in March after prosecutors declared the parents of a -year-old boy discovered inappropriate messages on a family tablet between their son and Ma ARRESTED IN FBI CHILD SEX OPERATION PATEL AND BONDI ANNOUNCEDespite the boy s parents not allowing him to have social media or his own electronics Ma was able to communicate with him through an unsanctioned after-school effort and through a school chat application the district attorney s office revealed Ma groomed the boy for over a year before she sexually assaulted him in her classroom over a period of three months while his parents deduced he was participating in an after-school basketball activity prosecutors explained Further assessment into Ma revealed that she had targeted and sexually assaulted a second victim an -year-old boy in according to the district attorney s office No child deserves what this defendant did and I hope this sentence brings a measure of justice to the casualties their families and the district that was left reeling from this defendant s crimes Stephan declared Ma must serve the full years before she is eligible for parole the Union-Tribune communicated