Two former Covina-Valley Unified School District teachers previously charged with misdemeanors for allegedly supplying booze to underage students on a camping trip were charged Tuesday with felony sex offenses.
Melody Suzanne Lippert, 38, of Covina, is accused of playing "matchmaker" for co-defendant Michelle Louise Ghirelli, 30, of West Covina, who is charged with having sex with a 17-year-old boy, according to Deputy District Attorney Kristin Bracic.
Lippert was charged with one felony count each of unlawful sexual intercourse and furnishing a controlled substance to a minor. She also faces a sentencing enhancement for being more than four years older than the victim. Ghirelli was charged with the same counts, plus a felony count of
oral copulation of a minor.
They also face one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors had previously declined to file more serious felony sex charges against the two, citing insufficient information.
"As we put out the news release, the sheriff's department kept investigating. New information was presented to us and we re-evaluated the charges," said Roxi Fyad, a spokeswoman for the Orange County District Attorney's Office. Fyad declined to discuss specifics of the ongoing case.
Lippert was a teacher at South Hills High School in West Covina and Ghirelli worked for the Covina-Valley Unified School District when prosecutors believe Lippert organized an unapproved beach trip with Ghirelli and five male students via text message.
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While at San Clemente Beach between Nov. 23 and Dec. 29, the teachers gave alcohol and cocaine to the students, and it was there that Lippert facilitated Ghirelli's sexual relationship with a 17-year-old, prosecutors said.
