In 1996, Mary Kay Letourneau, a 34-year-old teacher at Shorewood Elementary School in Washington, began a sexual relationship with one of her 13-year-old students, Vili Fualaau. Letourneau was married at the time with four children, and Fualaau was in her sixth-grade class.
Their relationship was discovered by school officials and Letourneau was arrested and charged with two counts of second-degree child rape. Despite the charges, Letourneau and Fualaau continued their relationship and she became pregnant with their first child.
Letourneau pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison, with all but six months suspended on the condition that she have no contact with Fualaau. However, shortly after her release, she was found to have violated the court order and was sent back to prison to serve the remainder of her sentence.
While in prison, Letourneau gave birth to their second child, and the pair continued their relationship after she was released from prison in 2004. They were married in 2005, and Letourneau worked to regain her teaching credentials, but ultimately lost her battle when her application was denied in 2018.
The couple has since separated and filed for legal separation, although they have not officially divorced. The story of Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau has generated national attention and controversy, with many questioning the nature of their relationship and the age difference between them.