Massachusetts

High School Teacher on Leave for Exchanging Nude Photos With Student

Dorothy Veracka, 42, was charged with posing/exhibiting a child in the nude, distributing obscene matter to a minor and possessing child pornography

A high school teacher is accused of exchanging nude pictures with a student at Nashoba Regional High School in Bolton, Massachusetts, and has been placed on administrative leave.

Dorothy Veracka, a 42-year-old from Clinton, was arraigned Tuesday in Clinton District Court on charges of posing/exhibiting a child in the nude, distributing obscene matter to a minor and possessing child pornography.

Veracka, a mother of three, is accused of sending nude photos of herself to one of her students, then 15, and receiving inappropriate pictures from the student in return. The exchange was allegedly going on for six months, according to court documents.

The student, a resident of Lancaster, provided evidence of the photos to police, including text conversations he saved from SnapChat saying that Veracka deliberately asked for the nude photos of him be sent to her, according to the court documents.

Veracka allegedly admitted to police that she received pictures from the teen.

"My client has entered a plea of not guilty to the charges filed against her, and she looks forward to being thoroughly vindicated on the day when the American criminal justice system renders its final verdict," read a statement from Veracka's attorney.

She did not issue a comment to NBC10 Boston but a neighbor said she was a "very nice person."

"Very caring person. She loves animals — that's why she was like, I'll feed your kitty. From all appearances, she all seems like a wonderful mother," the neighbor said.

Veracka was placed on administrative leave Sept. 30, Nashoba schools Superintendent Brooke Clenchy said, without commenting on specifics in the case.

"As you are aware, this is an ongoing personnel matter that I cannot comment on at this time," Clenchy said in a statement.

Students and parents at the school were not made aware that Veracka was put on leave until Tuesday.

"Everyone was talking about it — seeing it on the news and stuff. I was reading about it and all the teachers were talking about it," student Rocco Didomenico said.

Veracka is due back in court Nov. 26 for a pretrial hearing. In the meantime, she has been ordered to stay away from the school and the victim.

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