Teacher And Former Student Embrace National Media Attention
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The two went on an exclusive interview with ABC Thursday night, openly displaying and defending their relationship. Hooker is a business teacher who left his job and family last week to move into an apartment with Powell. He has a wife and three children, including a 17-year-old daughter who attends Modesto’s James Enochs High School with Powell.
Tammie Powers, Jordan Powell's mother, said she has reason to believe the teacher-student relationship started before her daughter turned 18, despite the couple’s claims the relationship only blossomed once she became legal. Tammie Powers wants to see Hooker in jail and has handed over to authorities records of phone records showing long, late-night phone calls and more than 8,000 text messages between the couple.
Powers knew about the relationship since last month, but was in for a surprise last week when Hooker came over to move her daughter’s belongings into his apartment. Since then, she has used her Facebook page to warn other parents.
“Clearly, he has a disconnect and bad judgment,” she told ABC. “And I don’t want another student to be in this position, or another family, ever.”
Police are currently investigating the couple’s relationship.
“The fact that there were these 8,000 messages, there was an ongoing relationship that was extracurricular, that doesn’t pass the smell test,” criminal attorney David Cohen said.
TIME reported Jordan Powers has stopped attending school and is finishing her senior year through independent study.
Of Hooker, she told ABC, “[He’s] my best friend. I mean, he’s more than just a lover.”
In considering whether to carry on their relationship, Hooker told the Sacramento Bee, “We keep asking ourselves, ‘Do we make everyone else happy or do we follow our hearts?’” In this case, following his heart may just mean trouble with the law.
The Modesto Bee ran a story on the moral, accountability and ethical issues the relationship raised:
Did it break with community values? Yes, say ModBee Facebook posts:
Erin Ray Mar posts: "If it were a year later, and he weren't in a position of authority, it wouldn't bother me. But violating a position of trust bothers me immensely, and my heart breaks for his wife and children."
Chris Harami writes: "Yes, she is 18, that hardly means she has any common sense yet."
Sheri Denney's take: "This is disgusting, but it could happen at any school. Like one of the earlier posts said, you can condemn the school or all the other teachers there. We need to be raising our children to know better. We need to be more involved in their lives, so maybe this kind of thing never happens."
Webpronews.com reported the two are scheduled to make appearances on NBC’s “Today Show.” “Dr. Phil,” “Inside Edition,” and “Nancy Grace” also want them to make guest appearances.
Powers also told The Modesto Bee:
"James Hooker is reveling in his short-term spotlight and notoriety. I have always contended that my ultimate goal is to gather facts and as a result of the publicity, someone will come forward with pertinent information," she said. "At the end of the day, my daughter's still with James Hooker."
View the ABC exclusive interview here:
Follow Executive Producer Rosa Trieu on Twitter.
Comments
One thing to note in this argument is that she may be Gerontosexual, which under rule of law is illegal to be until one is a "legal adult". So now she has come out of the closet. It is one of the sexual orientations whose rights are opposed by the other four recognized sexual orientations.
In nearly 80% of the cases, girls that age get marry/cohabit with men, regardless of his age, breakup before age 24, the point when females reach adulthood. Their whole view of the world, and those around them, including any children she may have by then, changes. Yes, they will likely break up within 5 years, but likely not before she has at least 1 child and get child support.
This kind of thing is common, with the growing shortage of young men because of dropping male birth rates since 1980, and the growing death rates, particularly from suicide in males as young 4. Their only option is to go for much older or much younger males. They're Master Manipulators of males, with 20% of teen girls wanting to be teen mothers.
http://Dads-House.org/SexEducation
She's not an adult, nor has she earned the right. In states the Age of Majority is 18, simply because boys must register for the Draft, something feminists lack the courage to demand the same right to do. Note in Mississippi the age of majority is 21.
http://Dads-House.org/TeenPrivacy
What he's done is wrong and he will regret it sooner than later. For 23 years I have work with divorced/single fathers, but with these types, there are times when I wish their head and a baseball bat. They're often held up as examples of why fathers shouldn't have custody because men are either child molesters or potential child molesters.
I suspect that he needs to be screened for depression, which is hitting all new highs in male, with many as young as age 4 committing suicide. Males do not react in the same way as females to depression, and unfortunately, due to the war on men's health by our government, while there are 200 fully funded federal commissions on women's health, there is none for men. There is no government funding for outreach and treatment programs for mental health issues in men, though they commit suicide far more often than women.
The US will always cringe whenever an eighteen year old uses the word "lover"...