James Hooker, Modesto Teacher Who Moved in with Student, Arrested for Alleged Sexual Assault
| This relationship might be legal, but his other one wasn't |
While police had been investigating whether that relationship was legal, they came across a previous relationship that definitely wasn't legal. According to Modesto police, Hooker was romantically involved with a 17-year-old student when he taught at Davis High School in 1998. Media outlets are reporting that Hooker befriended the victim and developed a sexual relationship with the minor -- and investigators claim there's evidence to prove it.
Today's arrest raises even more questions about his current relationship with Powers, who had been one of his students at Enochs High School. While Powers is now of legal age, her mother -- and police -- have questioned whether this relationship began when she was still a minor.
In extensive media interviews, both Hooker and Powers insist that they did not act on their love for one another until she turned 18. Once she became legal, he quit his job, left his wife and three daughters (one of whom is a year younger than Powers), and moved in with his teenage girlfriend.
| James Hooker's booking photo |
And dig up they did.
Police say they have obtained evidence that corroborates the victim's allegations of the 1998 affair. Detectives were able to obtain an arrest warrant for Hooker, who has been booked on charges of oral copulation with a minor.
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