A Pennsylvania javelin coach has been charged with sexually assaulting a 17-year-old boy she coached, and told authorities she was romantically involved with.
Hannah Marth was arrested after police learned she had engaged in a sexual relationship with the Northampton Area High School track and field teen athlete, prosecutors allege.
Prosecutors say the 26-year-old coach sent the victim a text at 2 a.m. in May 2021 and invited him to her home, where the two allegedly had sex.
The Northampton district attorney said in a news
release that Marth was the javelin coach during that time while the
student was an active member of the track and field program.
She confessed to authorities that she and the student were romantically involved in May 2021, prosecutors said.
The victim told police he and Marth were in a relationship that lasted until last October, the district attorney’s office said.
Marth has been charged with institutional sexual assault and sexual assault by a sports official, both third-degree felonies.
“A trusted relationship between a student-athlete, an athlete’s parent, and a coach can be a vulnerable one,” said District Attorney Terence Houck. “An abuse of that relationship shows a coach’s blatant disregard for the well-being of those she or he coached, and above all — the law.
“This defendant defied that trust when she committed this alleged crime against the victim.”
Easton
Superintendent David Piperato said in a statement that the school where
she teaches was made aware of the arrest and was cooperating with
authorities “and will take all necessary action to ensure the safety of
our students,” the newspaper reported.
She was reportedly arraigned Thursday afternoon, April 13 and freed on $75,000 unsecured bail.
