Former teacher gets 5 years for sexually assaulting special ed students

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BRIDGEPORT — There were no tears from Laura Ramos.

The eyes of the former Central High School teacher, who pleaded no contest to sexually assaulting two special education students, widened as she was sentenced Friday to five years in prison — but no tears.

Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Ann Lawlor told Superior Court Judge Robert Devlin that the 32-year-old Ramos showed no remorse for what she had done, in fact continuing to sexually abuse one of the victims while the case was pending.

Ramos’ lawyer, Edward Gavin, countered that the mother of a 3-year-old daughter is no pedophile.

“This is not a situation where we have an adult who has an inappropriate relationship with a 12-year-old,” Gavin continued. “These were two young men, one nearly 18 and the other almost 19,” he said.

The red began rising from the judge’s collar.

“These were not two valedictorians,” the judge retorted. “These are special education students and they need more support. Teachers need to know that if they cross those boundaries the court is going to take a firm stand.”

On the charges of two counts of second-degree sexual assault and one count of violating a protective order, Devlin sentenced Ramos to 10 years, suspended after she serves five years in prison and followed by 10 years of probation. He also ordered her to register as a sex offender.

Ramos, of Ansonia, was first charged with sexually assaulting an 18-year-old special education student between December 2016 and April 2017 and then later charged again after police claimed she sexually assaulted another student on many occasions including in a Shelton restaurant.

Ramos resigned her teaching post after her arrests. Gavin said she has been working as a waitress at a local diner to support herself and her daughter.

Police said in a video recorded statement following her first arrest, Ramos admitted having sex with the 18-year-old student “a handful of times,” beginning Dec. 23, 2016. She said most of the time they had sex in her car.

Police said a second special education student at the high school said on June 23, 2017, that he had also had sex with Ramos.

The student said that in April 2017 he went with Ramos to a Fairfield restaurant. After having dinner, the two went to Ramos’ car in the parking lot and had sex, police said the student told them.

On another occasion in April, police said, Ramos complained to the teen that her husband didn’t want to have sex with her and then took him to a restaurant in Shelton. While at that restaurant, the teacher and her student went into the restaurant’s “electrical room,” where they had sex, police said.

They said the teen told them he later received a text from Ramos saying it was the best sex she ever had.

Following her first arrest, Ramos was issued a court order barring her from having any further contact with the first victim.

But Lawlor said Ramos violated that order when on June 22, 2017, she was pulled over by police in Waterford while driving the first victim to the beach.