Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office

                                 25 Kirkpatrick Street, 3rd Floor, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 08901 (732) 745-3300

 

                                *News Release*           Date: December 2, 2009

 
 

MCPO PATCH
 
       

 

 

 

 

School teacher arrested on sex assault, child endangerment charges

 

 

          Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce J. Kaplan and Edison Police Chief Thomas Bryan today announced the arrest of a fifth-grade school teacher and high school swim coach on charges of having sexual relations with a 17-year-old female student since June of this year.

 

          Sarah E. Blessing, (DOB 11/22/82) of Lacosta Place, South Plainfield, was arrested at her home on December 1, 2009, and was charged with sexual assault, criminal sexual contact and endangering the welfare of the child.    Blessing is currently incarcerated at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center in North Brunswick.

 

Bail has been set at $150,000, with no 10 percent, by Superior Court Judge James Mulvihill, who ordered the defendant to have no contact with the victim.

 

          Blessing has been teaching fifth grade at Park Middle School in Scotch Plains since 2005.  She has also been a swim coach at the Bishop George Ahr High School in Edison since 2005. The Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District has been notified and has suspended her with pay.  The Diocese of Metuchen has been notified and has terminated Blessing’s employment, effective today.

 

          Blessing was arrested and charged after an investigation by Investigator Raj Chopra of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office and Detective Michael Michalski and Detective Tim Farrell of the Edison Police Department determined that Blessing had a sexual relationship with the Bishop Ahr student beginning in approximately June 2009.

 

          The investigation began yesterday, after the matter was brought to the attention of law enforcement by the Diocese of Metuchen.

 

          Anyone with information is asked to call Investigator Chopra at (732) 745-3600, or Detectives Michalski or Farrell at (732) 248-7525.

 

          As is the case with all criminal defendants, the charges against Blessing are merely accusations and she is presumed innocent until proven guilty.