Additional charges filed against Ex-Wall High School teacher

FREEHOLD — Former Wall High School teacher Julie Rizzitello will return to court next Tuesday to face charges related to a sexual relationship she is accused of having with her former student after she was brought up on two new charges when she appeared in court today.

Rizzitello, 36, of Brick Township, who resigned from her teaching position before her arrest, was charged with two counts of sexual assault, witness tampering and three counts of criminal sexual contact when arrested at her home by Wall Township Police on July 3.

She was additionally charged with third degree witness tampering out of Wall Township, as well as one count of second degree sexual assault out of Ocean County, when she appeared in front of State Superior Court Judge Mark Lemieux in court today.

The case is being prosecuted by Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Keri-Leigh Schaefer. Shaefer explained during the hearing that Rizzitello is also being brought up on a new charge from Ocean County, which the county has requested be overseen by Monmouth County’s Judge Lemeiux. Schaefer declined to comment on the case following the hearing.

Rizzitello is represented by Francis R. Hodgson, with an office in Toms River. He declined to comment after the arraignment hearing.

Criminal complaints from the student provided in a Belmar Police Department arrest warrant indicate the alleged relationship took place between May 18 and June 14 of this year. The victim, now a former student of the high school, was between the ages of 18 and 22 when the offenses occurred. Probable cause complaints specify the activity as “oral and vaginal intercourse” between that timeframe; “sexual gratification” began in April.

A collaborative investigation resulted in charges being filed in both Monmouth and Ocean counties. The alleged victim gave a formal report, detailing activity with Rizzitello, which included sexual intercourse “in his vehicle in Brick, NJ.” Other municipalities where activity occurred included Wall Township and Belmar.

Rizzitello was a 9th-grade English teacher, according to a now-removed webpage on Wall Public Schools’ website. Public records show that she started working for the Wall Township Board of Education (BOE) in 2013 and had an annual salary of $63,175 in 2023. According to the BOE’s July 16 meeting human resources report, Rizzitello resigned effective July 3, the day of her arrest.

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