Last year a pair of Covina Valley schoolteachers in California came under fire for allegedly hosting an overnight camping trip that wasn’t sanctioned by school officials. The women supposedly took five male students on the trip and heard a bevy of charges related to the alleged sex and drug-fueled orgy this past Monday (Mar. 2).
South Hills High School teacher Melody Lippert, 38, and Covina Valley Unified School District teacher Michelle Ghirelli, 30, were arrested for the actions at San Clemente Beach back in January. Additional charges were announced on Monday, which include unlawful sexual intercourse and the pair providing liquor and cocaine to the students.
More from KTLA:
Melody Suzanne Lippert, 38, Covina, was facing additional charges of one felony count of unlawful sexual intercourse, one felony count of furnishing a controlled substance to a minor in addition to the original previous charge of one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Co-defendant Michelle Louise Ghirelli, 30, West Covina, was charged with one felony count of unlawful sexual intercourse, one felony count of furnishing a controlled substance to a minor, one felony count of oral copulation of a minor in addition to the original previous charge of one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Both women were also charged with a sentencing enhancement for being four years or older than the minor.
The trip occurred during the last week in December of 2014. Both Lippert and Ghirelli are scheduled to be arraigned today. If the charges stick, Lippert faces 10 years and six months in state prison. Ghirelli faces 11 years and eight months in state prison.
The South Hills High School, which is in West Covina, was also the site of another sex scandal involving a part-time wrestling coach for the girl’s team.
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Photo: Orange County Sheriff’s Department/KTLA
