Teacher at Elite L.A. School Had Sex with Teen Student in Her Classroom, a Hotel and His House
A former teacher at an elite California private school has pleaded no contest to having unlawful sex with a student in 2017.
Dr. Aimee Palmitessa, 47, entered her plea to three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, PEOPLE confirms. A judge sentenced her to three years in prison.
Palmitessa taught science at the Brentwood School, a K-12 school in Los Angeles with tuition up to $40,000 a year. During her ninth year of teaching, a 16-year-old student came forward and alleged that he had engaged in sex with Palmitessa several times, including some incidents the previous summer. She was was arrested on August 18, 2017.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the victim filed a lawsuit in 2018, alleging that the school was negligent in allowing the teacher to abuse him. The lawsuit alleged that Palmitessa had a “reputation for inappropriate conduct with students.”
The sex acts allegedly occurred on the school campus, at an upscale hotel and at both of their homes.
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Upon Palmitessa’s arrest, the school suspended her.
“The Los Angeles Police Department informed us yesterday afternoon that Dr. Aimee Palmitessa had been arrested on suspicion of inappropriate relations with a Brentwood School student and is expected to face charges,” school administrator Mike Riera said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE in 2017. “We immediately placed Dr. Palmitessa on administrative leave.”
“As always, our primary concern is the safety, health and well-being of our students here at Brentwood School,” Riera’s statement continued. “To that end, we will do everything we can to cooperate with the official police investigation.”
One of California’s highest-ranked schools, Brentwood has a long list of celebrity alumni, including Adam Levine, Jonah Hill, Fred Savage and the children of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
After serving her sentence, Palmitessa will be placed on the state’s sex offender registry. PEOPLE confirms that her teaching certificate has been revoked.
