A former Madison teacher could face up to a three-year prison sentence for a sexual encounter she had with a student last year.
As reported by Norfolk Daily News, Nixel Ortiz, 30, of Madison pleaded guilty in Madison County District Court on Friday to a reduced charge of attempted first-degree sexual abuse by a school employee.
Before pleading guilty, Ortiz faced up to a 20-year prison sentence. As part of her plea deal, the Madison County Attorney's Office will recommend probation at sentencing, which is scheduled for Nov. 21. Ortiz will be required to register as a sex offender.
Ortiz came under investigation in May 13, 2024, over an inappropriate relationship between her, then 28, and an 18-year-old high school student. The alleged relationship was reported to school authorities, who were advised by attorneys for the school district to contact law enforcement, according to an affidavit by a Nebraska State Patrol investigator.
The investigator interviewed Ortiz at Madison High School. Ortiz said the student had asked her multiple times in recent months what the legal age is for a teacher to date a student in Nebraska.
When asked about the sexual encounter, Ortiz said that she and the student started texting each other on the afternoon of graduation day. Ortiz picked the student up from his house and drove him to her apartment, telling the investigator, "stuff happened, and that was it."
Ortiz detailed the apparent sexual encounter to the investigator and said she eventually took the student home. The incident happened on May 5, 2024, she said, which was the day the student graduated.
Matthew Kiernan, deputy Madison County attorney, said on Friday that the victim was a student at the time of the encounter or had been a student within 90 days of the incident. Under state law, school employees may be charged with sexual abuse if the victim was a student within 90 days of the incident in question.
The investigator interviewed other teachers, one of whom said Ortiz told her about the sexual encounter. Ortiz, according to the affidavit, told the teacher that the student had begun texting her during the winter months and was "expressing interest," to which Ortiz initially responded "no" because of her status as a teacher.
The student, when interviewed, initially denied being involved in an inappropriate relationship with Ortiz but later said that the story Ortiz gave was correct. Another teacher told the investigator about seeing Ortiz at a graduation party on May 5, 2024, and that Ortiz was bragging about a high school student messaging her.
Ortiz was placed on administrative leave a day after school administrators learned of the allegations. She resigned in June 2024.
