Former teacher accused of raping students to stand trial

COVINGTON, Tenn. (Court TV) — A former teacher accused of sexually abusing students will face 13 of more than 20 charges against her when her trial begins in January.

Alyssa McCommon is seen sitting in court before a motions hearing on Aug. 26, 2024. (Court TV)

On Monday, a judge granted a motion from Alissa McCommon’s defense to sever some of the charges in her case, which means that when her trial begins in January, it will focus on only one alleged victim rather than the three listed in an indictment. McCommon will stand trial on the remaining charges after the first trial ends.

McCommon is charged with rape of a child, tampering with evidence, coercion of a witness and aggravated stalking for her alleged relationship with former students. She was first arrested in Sept. 2023 after multiple alleged victims came forward to report inappropriate behavior.

The Covington Police Department said the alleged victims each reported McCommon began playing video games with them, then started chatting with them on social media and then eventually sending sexually explicit content and “requesting sexual relations with the victim.” The first trial will center around an alleged victim who was 12 years old when the relationship began in 2021.

After her initial arrest in early Sept. 2023, McCommon bonded out of jail but was taken back into custody after reaching out to the alleged victims. Police said McCommon used a previously unknown phone number to initiate contact with an alleged victim and used a specific code word previously used to indicate the child should be alone. Police noted, “After using the code word on 28 September 2023, the evidence indicates McCommon sent multiple text messages to victim indicating he would ‘regret doing this.'” During the same conversation, McCommon, who was fired from her job as an elementary teacher at Charger Academy, told the alleged victim that she was pregnant with his child, USA Today reported .

McCommon remains in custody and is due back in court for a status hearing in October. Her first trial is scheduled to begin on Jan. 7, 2025.