Both sentenced.
May 31, 2007 - Police arrested Rebecca Becker, 28, a teacher at the McQuade Kaplan School. She was charged with rape, criminal sexual act and endangering the welfare of a child. Also arrested was Maria Zurita, 28, a teacher's aide, who is charged with rape and endangering the welfare of a child. Both are accused of having sex with students from the troubled teen school.
From the McQuade website: "McQuade's Kaplan School provides special education and behavioral health services year-round for 84 boys who are emotionally disturbed, ages 8-17. Forty-four of the students live at the Kaplan Cam
pus in our residential treatment program and the other 40 students live at home with their families, but attend the Kaplan School daily for their educational needs as well as individual and family therapy. As a regional organiz
ation, we accept Hudson Valley students referred by NYS departments of social services, family courts, or school districts."
The boys, both 16-years old, could not be located on Memorial Day weekend. They were later found at the home of the teacher's aide where sexual activity is alleged. McQuade also reportedly discovered numerous letters written by one of the teachers to one of the male residents. The contents of these letters were sexually explicit and inappropriate, authorities said.
(Becker, shown above left. Zurity, shown above right.)
June 1 - Both have been fired.
June 13 - The case against the two teachers will be going to a grand jury. No date was given. They are due back in court on September 11.
INDICTED: July 28 - Both Becker and Zurita, were charged by a grand jury with third-degree rape, a felony, and two misdemeanor counts of endangering the welfare of a child. In addition, Becker was charged with two counts third-degree criminal sexual act.
GUILTY PLEA: Sept 24 - Becker pleaded guilty and is set to be sentenced in November. She could receive up to six months in the Orange County Jail and up to 10 years probation.
The district attorney’s office is hoping she will cooperate in the case against Zurita, and if she does, her sentence could be reduced.
SENTENCING DELAYED Nov 30 - Sentencing for Becker was delayed until after the trial of Maria Zurita, 28, who was arrested along with Becker in June by New Windsor police. Becker didn't sign a formal plea-bargain deal with prosecutors, but her lawyer, John Ingrassia of Middletown, acknowledged today that "she may be called as a witness" during Zurita's trial.
Becker cut a deal that calls for a maximum sentence of six months in jail and 10 years' probation as a sex offender.
TRIAL DELAYED Jan 29, 2008 - Zurita's trial was postponed until Feb 4. There were problems in serving a supoena for the victim to appear. The boy has a lawyer who argued that a mailed subpoena was defective because a copy wasn't mailed to the boy's mother, and because a mailed copy showed the return address of the district attorney's office and wasn't marked "personal and confidential."
The judge said that if prosecutors can't supoena the boy by the February date, they may have to ask DeRosa to order the teen to show up, and he could be placed in custody if he's deemed a risk to flee.
JURY SELECTION Feb 4 - Jury selection began in Zarita's trial. A plea agreement had been reached but was abruptly called off by an angry judge who ordered the trial to begin.
ARREST WARRANT ISSUED Feb 5 - The judge ordered the teenager arrested when he failed to show up in court. The material witness order and the arrest warrant will allow prosecutors to place the boy in custody so that he'll be available to testify. Rebecca Becker took the witness stand.
STATUTORY RAPE CHARGE DISMISSED Feb 7 - The judge dismissed the statutory rape charge against Zurita because the victim refused to testify. She still faces a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child.
GUILTY VERDICT Feb 8 - The jury found Zurita guilty of endangering the welfare of a child.
April 18 - Students at New Visions class at Orange-Ulster BOCES have been following the case.
Those kids are in McQuade because they're troubled," said Amber Becker, a New Visions student from Chester. "Those teachers knew that they were unstable already, and they took advantage of that."Zurita's defense lawyer wants the judge to set aside the jury verdict that found her guilty of a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child. He contends that when DeRosa dismissed a statutory rape charge against Zurita, the judge also eliminated any reason for the jury to find that Zurita had endangered the boy.
Zurita's due back in court on May 5. Becker will be sentenced on May 21. She pleaded guilty to statutory rape, but she could avoid jail time because she testified against Zurita.
May 22 - Beckner was sentenced to three months in jail - not prison, followed by ten years of probation. She will be required to register as a sex offender for 20 years. She will never teach again.
Zurita was sentenced recently to one year in jail - not prison.
