An elderly Florida history teacher has been arrested and charged over allegations that he groomed one of his female students over several years and then had sex with her “every day after school.”
Tom Miller Privett, 70, was described as a calculating predator who groomed the victim over three years after meeting her in 2012 when she was a ninth-grade student in his classroom at the Terra Environmental Research Institute Magnet School in West Kendall.
An arrest warrant obtained by the Miami Herald states he started by wooing her and touching her inappropriately as she mourned death in her family before he began “rubbing her arms while in class,” “rubbing her back” and then “continued to kiss her on the head, cheek and partial lips.”
When she reached the 10th grade, Privett started making “rude and disrespectful” comments about the teen’s weight, causing her to develop an eating disorder so she could “look good” for the teacher.
By the time she was in the 11th grade, their conversations had turned explicitly sexual, with the 70-year-old talking to her about his “sexual desires” and fetishes. During her senior year, in 2016, he took her virginity inside the classroom.
“The victim further alleged that she and Privett engaged in sexual activity every day after school inside of Privett’s classroom for the next three months until the school year ended,” the warrant states.
He reportedly continued to force her into having sex with him even after she was in an accident that caused her “serious discomfort in her hips” and told her it was because “this is what she was supposed to do.”
The victim came forward to the police this past December, following which the Miami-Dade Schools police and the State Attorney’s Office worked together to build a case against him.
To gather evidence, they had the victim call Privett to discuss their sexual relationship, as detectives listened. He is said to have “engaged in this conversation” and confirmed the allegations made against him.
Privett, a history and government teacher who spent most of his 30-year career at South Dade High and Terra, was arrested in Pinellas County last week on charges of sexual battery with a child under custodial authority.
“Every educator deserves to earn the trust and respect placed in them by students, parents and school administrators,” said State Attorney Katherine Fernandez in a statement.
“When a teacher transforms from an esteemed educator to an alleged sexual predator, lives are permanently damaged, trust is betrayed, and a serious crime has been committed.”
Privett was also a longtime volunteer at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, where he also frequently worked with students, and prosecutors believe he may have had more victims. Anyone with further information on his crimes can contact the State Attorney’s Office at 305-547-0441.
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