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New Port Richey Teacher Arrested In Student Sex Case

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By GEOFF FOX

The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 25, 2008

Updated: 03/24/2008 11:34 pm

NEW PORT RICHEY - Another Tampa Bay area educator is accused of having sex with a minor.

Substitute teacher Lisa Robyn Marinelli, 40, was arrested Monday and charged with unlawful sex with a minor, the Pasco County Sheriff's Office said. She also is accused of giving the 17-year-old boy a pair of her underwear as a memento of their sexual relationship, sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll said.

The boy's father told investigators that he saw his son "holding his pants together and putting them back in place" after exiting Marinelli's 2007 Chrysler 300 on Feb. 27, Doll said.

Communication between Marinelli and the boy began in January, when the boy was 16, records state. It was unclear how Marinelli met the boy.

"The victim's father provided documents of hundreds of cell phone calls, and there were about 35 text messages still on the victim's cell phone," Doll said.

No Previous Arrest Record

The boy showed investigators several locations where he said he had sex with Marinelli in her vehicle, Doll said. Under Florida law, a 17-year-old cannot consent to sex with a person 24 or older.

The boy told investigators he had sex with Marinelli 10 times between Jan. 12 and Feb. 27, an affidavit stated. Most of the sexual encounters took place in Marinelli's car at locations in and around the Longleaf community.

A business address on Marinelli's arrest report is that of Mitchell High School on Little Road in New Port Richey. It was not immediately known whether Marinelli, of 9824 Nicklaus Drive, had worked at other schools in the county. She has no previous arrest history, records show.

Marinelli was being held at the Land O' Lakes Jail on Monday night with bail set at $20,000.

Pasco school district officials did not return phone calls seeking comment and a Mitchell High assistant principal declined to comment.

A woman who answered the phone at Marinelli's address Monday evening said that neither Lisa Marinelli nor her husband, Brian, were available to comment.

Latest In String Of Arrests

Marinelli is the third Bay area teacher to be charged recently with a sex-related crime against a minor. In Hillsborough County, former Davidsen Middle School math teacher Stephanie Ragusa and Freedom High English teacher Mary Jo Spack of Wesley Chapel face charges of having sex with underage students.

Since 2005, at least 10 schoolteachers in Hillsborough and neighboring counties have been arrested on similar charges.

Doll said there was no indication that Marinelli had other possible victims.

"But if anybody has information about other victims we need to talk to them," he said.

Anyone with information may call the sheriff's office at 1-800-854-2862.

Reporter Karen Branch-Brioso contributed to this report. Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 948-4217 or gfox@tampatrib.com.

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