A teacher accused of having sex with a student was released from jail Thursday and ordered by a judge not to have contact with anyone associated with Evangelical Christian School, including her children's teachers.
The Lee County Sheriff's Office arrested Suzanne Owen, 35, who taught at Evangelical Christian in south Fort Myers, on Wednesday, charging her with custodial sexual battery, a first-degree felony. The Sheriff's Office said Owen and the student had one sexual encounter and exchanged text messages for several weeks.
Owen is no longer listed on the Evangelical Christian School's website as being among the school's educators. She had been on the site as an upper school Bible and Spanish teacher.
Owen's husband, Jonathan Owen, is a soccer coach at Evangelical Christian, and her three children are students at the school, Suzanne Owen's attorney Geraldo Olivo said.
The private college preparatory school has more than 1,100 students in grades preschool through 12th, according to its website. School Headmaster John Hunte did not return a call seeking comment Thursday.
Suzanne Owen has Florida teaching certificates in elementary education and Spanish. No action has been taken regarding her certificate. In Florida, teachers hold their certificates until the Education Practices Commission takes disciplinary action, Audrey Walden, a state Department of Education press secretary, wrote in an email.
Walden said the Department of Education cannot confirm whether it has opened an investigation as a result of Owen's arrest.
Evangelical Christian participates in the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program, so it must abide by a long list of state-mandated requirements.
The school's teachers must have at least a bachelor's degree, at least three years of public or private teaching experience or expertise that qualifies them to teach. Its teachers also must undergo state and national background checks.
Suzanne Owen is a 2005 graduate of Free Will Baptist Bible College, now known as Welch College, in Nashville, Tennessee.
She began teaching at Evangelical Christian in 2011. Suzanne Owen also has taught at three Nashville schools: Christ Presbyterian Academy from 2005-06, Glendale Elementary from 2006-07 and Tulip Grove Elementary from 2007-08.
Suzanne Owen had her first court appearance before Judge Tara Paluck on Thursday afternoon, appearing on a video feed from the Lee County Jail wearing a red jumpsuit. Suzanne Owen did not speak during her court appearance. She later posted a $50,000 bail and was released from jail.
"Mrs. Owen clearly understands the gravity of what the allegations are and everything that's involved with this case," Olivo said after the hearing.
The judge ordered Suzanne Owen not to have contact with any minors — save for supervised contact with her children — and the student she is accused of having sex with. She can't go to Evangelical Christian or contact anyone associated with the school, except for her husband. She must wear an ankle monitor.
Olivo asked Paluck to allow Suzanne Owen to have contact with her children's teachers, but the judge denied his request.
"That no contact would apply also to teachers, and if you need information regarding your children, certainly you can contact your husband who can assist you in getting any information that you may need," Paluck told Suzanne Owen.
Olivo said he has met with Suzanne Owen's family, including her in-laws and her parents, who arrived in Fort Myers from Tennessee on Thursday.
"At this time they are still trying to process everything," Olivo said. "They obviously support Mrs. Owen, and they are standing by her."