Jennifer Fichter


Jennifer Christine Fichter is an American convicted criminal and former English teacher in Polk County, Florida, United States. Fichter was arrested by Lakeland Police on April 15, 2014 and charged with numerous counts of sexual battery stemming from relationships with three 17-year-old students.

Early life and career

General

Jennifer Fichter was born on December 8, 1984 and graduated from Paxon School for Advanced Studies in Jacksonville, Florida in June 2003. She then attended the University of Florida from August 2003 to December 2006 earning a Bachelor of Arts Degree majoring in English. She held instructional teaching positions at Robinswood Middle School, Orange County, Florida from August 13, 2007 to December 19, 2008 when she resigned pending the outcome an investigation for alleged offenses of inappropriate behavior.

Sexual abuse

Fichter was hired as an English teacher at Kathleen High School on August 29, 2011, and was paid US$40,530 per year. The Central Florida Aerospace Academy is a career academy of Kathleen High and holds classes at Lakeland Linder International Airport. Fichter was unanimously fired by the Polk County School Board on April 22, 2014 after her arrest for sexual relationships with three of her male students, all 17 years old, more than 37 times between August 2012 and April 2014.

Trial and sentencing

As of June 7, 2014 Fichter was being held in the Polk County Jail with a bond set at US$520,000. Fichter was convicted and, on July 2, 2015, was sentenced to 22 years' imprisonment. A Polk County judge called her a predator during sentencing. The sentencing by Judge Glenn T. Shelby was immediately controversial, with the unusually long sentence being reviled by many, especially in Europe.
Fichter is currently imprisoned in the Lowell Correctional Institution and is scheduled for release in 06/30/2035.