A one-time substitute educator in Missouri received a decade-long prison sentence on Wednesday after being charged with providing students with money, liquor, and narcotics in exchange for sexual acts.
Carissa Jane Smith, age 31, of Dixon, was taken into custody last November on 19 charges, which included statutory rape and sexual contact with a student, according to the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office at the time.
In September, Smith entered a guilty plea to reduced charges of one count of child endangerment and two counts of sexual contact with a student, KRCGTV reported.
According to a statement released by the district after Smith’s arrest last year, Smith was employed by the Dixon School District as a paraprofessional and a long-term substitute. In August 2024, she stepped down from her position.
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The sheriff’s office stated in a probable cause statement that Smith allegedly offered students cash, cannabis, and alcohol in exchange for sex or to allow her to perform oral sex.
Reportedly, Smith would meet the victims in secluded areas or when her husband was away at work.
According to the sheriff’s office, victims informed investigators that Smith engaged in sexual activity with them at her residence or other locations, “such as gravel roads or on the side of the road.” One victim claimed that Smith had asked him to engage in sexual relations when he was a middle school student.
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The victims informed investigators that Smith instructed them to keep their interactions a secret to avoid getting herself into trouble.
According to USA Today, citing the probable cause statement, one victim stated that Smith’s husband threatened them with a baseball bat after she informed him that they were trying to blackmail her with a video of her smoking marijuana with students.
Smith’s sentence includes six years in the Missouri Department of Corrections for child endangerment, and two years for each of the sexual contact charges.
