Jacqueline Ma, a former San Diego County “Teacher of the Year,” has pleaded guilty to lewd acts involving an 11-year-old student at Lincoln Acres Elementary School in National City. The plea agreement was announced Wednesday, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Ma, 35, is expected to be sentenced to 30 years to life in Chula Vista Superior Court. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 9. She was initially charged with 19 felony counts related to lewd conduct with multiple minors.
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As part of the plea deal, Ma admitted guilt to two counts of lewd acts with a child under 14, with duress, and admitted to a lewd act involving a second child under 14. She also pleaded guilty to a count of possessing material depicting a minor engaged in or simulating sexual conduct.
San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Drew Hart stated that Ma abused the trust placed in her by parents, allowing her access to the victims. He emphasized that Ma was a respected member of the community.
Ma’s attorney, Patrick Griffin, told the outlet that she has expressed genuine remorse from the beginning of the case.
Ma was awarded San Diego County “Teacher of the Year” in August 2022, just seven months before her arrest. During a preliminary hearing in 2023, Detective Colleen Stanich read messages between Ma and one of the students, including one message where the student allegedly said, “Sometimes I think you don’t understand that I am a kid still, and this is my only real relationship.”
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Judge Maryann D’Addezio, who presided over Wednesday’s hearing, echoed Hart’s assessment, stating the evidence made it “overwhelmingly clear that the defendant took advantage of two children.”
Prosecutors allege that the relationship between Ma and the students spanned several months, during which she sent sexually explicit photos and text messages.
In a Kusi News interview in August 2022, Ma spoke about her focus on social-emotional learning and personal confidence in her classroom, claiming she wanted to be a champion for her students.
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