A former Wisconsin elementary school teacher is set to stand trial after she allegedly exchanged thousands of sexually explicit texts with her 11-year-old student.
Madison Bergmann, 24, was arrested in May for starting an inappropriate relationship with the boy just three months before her own wedding.
The principal of River Crest Elementary called Hudson police to report possible inappropriate conduct between a teacher and one of her fifth-graders, according to NBC affiliate KARE.
Screenshots of texts between the pair were shown to investigators that revealed Bergmann saying how much she enjoyed the student touching her and “making out” with him.
Bergmann now faces 10 felony charges, including sexual assault of a child under the age of 13, child enticement, sexual misconduct by school staff and use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime.
During a preliminary hearing in St. Croix County Circuit Court on Monday, Bergmann kept her head down as some of the salacious texts were read out loud.
Prosecutors revealed that a forensic search of Bergmann and the student’s cell phones revealed a staggering 33,000 text messages between the two.
Traci Hall, a school resource officer, testified on the stand that Bergmann and the boy would talk every day and that Bergmann had told her that they kissed several times after school or during the lunch break.
One text revealed the teacher saying she would wear dresses more often as she “liked how he touched her leg.”
“In her notes [Bergmann] tells him that she loves him, wants to kiss him, he turns her on, and that she is obsessed with him,” according to the criminal complaint.
Hall told the court that the relationship became more sexual and explicit as time went on.
Bergmann’s computer and bag were also searched and investigators discovered nearly three dozen emails and handwritten notes exchanged between the pair.
In court on Monday, Bergmann’s attorneys argued that she was overcharged and say there is not enough evidence to support the five charges of misconduct.
“There is never any language where she says, ‘I want to have sex with you or that he says ‘I want you to do this with me,’” Attorney Joseph Tamburino said.
“They talk a lot about kissing, and lips, and cheeks, and touching legs. They also talk about some sexual issues, obviously, about a woman’s body and a man’s body. “But nothing like, ‘this is what I want you to do to me,’ or ‘this is what I will do to you.’”
Judge Nordstrand disagreed and ruled that the state has proven there is enough probable cause for the case to continue.
Bergmann is expected to appear back in court on November 7.
