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Teacher May Have Had Sex With Other Students

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Stephanie Marie Ragusa faced a judge this morning.

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By MIKE WELLS and THOMAS W. KRAUSE

The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 14, 2008

Updated: 03/14/2008 06:01 pm

TAMPA Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office investigators are looking into teacher Stephanie Ragusa's relationships with other students.

Stephanie Ragusa

Ragusa was charged Thursday night for having sex with a 14-year-old student.

"We are looking for additional victims," said sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter. "There are possibly other victims."

Carter would not say how many or whether any knew the 14-year-old.

The sheriff's office is asking anyone with information about other victims to contact them.

Investigators monitored a phone call between the student and Ragusa in which the teacher acknowledged having sex with boy, according to information released today by the sheriff's office.

During the phone call, Ragusa acknowledged "repercussions for having engaged in the act," the sheriff's office said.

Ragusa has faced repercussions on the job before, according to the school district.

On her job application filled out in August 2006, Ragusa indicated she had never been arrested or charged with anything other than a minor traffic violation.

She apparently lied, district spokeswoman Linda Cobbe said.

Records from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement show Ragusa has been arrested at least twice in the past.

Tampa police arrested her at 2:30 a.m. July 15, 2005, in Ybor City on suspicion of driving under the influence, jail records show. She refused to submit to a breath alcohol test. The charge was dismissed at trial, according to court records.

Ragusa was arrested in Pasco County on Oct. 21, 2004, on a charge of aggravated battery, but the charge was dropped, FDLE records show.

Hillsborough court records also show that on May 1, 2001, Ragusa was charged with first-degree petty theft – a misdemeanor. After she completed a pre-trial intervention program in 2003 with the Salvation Army, prosecutors dismissed the charge.

When school administrators uncovered her arrest record through a fingerprint check with FDLE and the FBI, Ragusa was called in for a meeting with the school district's office of professional standards, district spokeswoman Linda Cobbe said.

Ragusa acknowledged the arrests, and because the charges had been dropped or dismissed, she was allowed to continue her employment, Cobbe said.

"If they come in to admit it and meet with Professional Standards, they give them a second chance," Cobbe said. "This is nothing new. I've seen this happen before."

Her problems apparently didn't end there. Her personnel file contains two letters of reprimand for inappropriate conduct, Cobbe said.

The first letter concerned an incident that happened in September 2006 in a Madison Middle School classroom in which Ragusa reportedly restrained a student who threatened to leave the room.

Cobbe said she grabbed the girl's arm and that action was inappropriate.

Law enforcement was called to the scene and the principal contacted a child abuse hotline, the letter said. No criminal charges resulted.

Ragusa was criticized for "poor decision making" and was ordered by the district to seek anger management training and a training session on professionalism, the letter said.

In December, Ragusa was reprimanded for using profanity in her classroom, another letter said.

Administrators said talking to students about what she did over the weekend and her personal life "was not professional or acceptable."

The letter warned that any more incidents would result in a recommendation that she be fired as a classroom teacher.

A judge this morning determined Ragusa should be held without bail on charges that she had sex with a 14-year-old student. Judge Walter Heinrich Jr. set another bail hearing for Wednesday and said investigators will have to present any other evidence at that time.

The victim told investigators about an incident March 4, 2007, in which he saw two tattoos on either side of Ragusa's groin area that were normally covered by clothing, according to the sheriff's office.

The investigation began when another Davidsen teacher heard a rumor and told administrators: A male student had an affair with a math teacher who had taught there the previous year.

The information was reported March 7, said school district spokesman Steve Hegarty, and on Wednesday, the deputy assigned to the school, at 10501 Montague St., questioned the teen who was said to be involved.

The boy, now 15, is not being identified by authorities because he is considered a victim of a sex crime. He told the deputy that a sexual relationship developed between him and Ragusa when he was 14, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said.

In court today, Heinrich said sheriff's investigators asked the boy to call Ragusa and monitored the call.
Late Thursday afternoon, deputies arrested Ragusa at her Lake Bella Vista Drive home in Tampa and charged her with five counts of lewd and lascivious battery, authorities said.

She is accused of having sex at least three times with the teen from January to May 2007, the sheriff's office said. One of the encounters took place while the teen should have been in an after-school class, and others occurred in Ragusa's Lexus and her former apartment in the Hunter's Run complex, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

Ragusa co-taught one of the boy's classes with another teacher, Cobbe said.

She started working for the school district in 2006 at Madison Middle School in South Tampa, district officials said. She voluntarily transferred midyear to Davidsen in Westchase.

Most recently, Ragusa has been working at Martinez Middle School in Lutz. The school's Web site lists her as a seventh-grade math teacher.

She was placed on paid leave while the school board reviews the situation, Cobbe said. Standard procedure includes sending Ragusa a letter informing her not to report to work until further notice, Hegarty said.

On Tuesday, the superintendent will recommend to the school board that Ragusa be suspended without pay, Cobbe said.

Principals at Davidsen and Martinez could not be reached for comment Thursday night.

School district officials are expected to examine Ragusa's personnel files today, Hegarty said.

When contacted by phone, Ragusa's father, Ricardo Ragusa, declined to comment on his daughter's arrest.

Friends of Ragusa's said they were shocked at the allegations.

The allegations just don't fit with the woman she knows, said Cindy Gurney-Puglise of Sebastian.

Gurney-Puglise is a former gym owner and boxing manager. She said she met Ragusa about five years ago when Ragusa worked as a sports reporter. Ragusa wrote one story for the Tribune, published in September 2003, according to the newspaper's archives.

"It sounds like someone totally different than Stephanie," Gurney-Puglise said of the charges. "It's very surprising."

Tribune sports reporter Anwar S. Richardson said he's considered Ragusa a good friend for about five years.

"We talked, hung out and had a good friendship," Richardson said. "She covered boxing then and through that circle we became friendly."

She listed him as a reference on her job application without asking his permission he said.
"The thing is, I probably would have said yes," he said.

She always called on his birthday and had visited him every day of a seven-day hospital stay he suffered a few years ago, he said.

They last spoke months ago when she talked about having troubles at her teaching job and that she was considering going back to school, Richardson said.

Gurney-Puglise said she became good friends with Ragusa and that they often shopped together. Ragusa would visit and help care for her when she was sick with a cold, she said.

"It makes her feel good to really help people and to be kind to people," Gurney-Puglise said.
Ragusa usually dates athletes, she said.

"She has no problem getting a boyfriend," Gurney-Puglise said. "She's just picky."

The pickiness had something to do with a previous boyfriend who was possessive and controlling, Gurney-Puglise said. Hillsborough County court records show Ragusa twice has sought protective orders, one in 2006 against a Michael Zak and another in 2007 against Tony Irvin.

Irvin was a minor league player for the Texas Rangers.

Gurney-Puglise said the young woman's bubbly demeanor and friendliness often have been mistaken for flirting.

"I can't see her going after a child. Not for a heartbeat," she said.

She said Ragusa is petite and attractive.

"I can see a kid look at her and go, 'Wow. Look at that woman,' " Gurney-Puglise said. "That's every kid's fantasy."

Karen Duncan, a clinical therapist in Indianapolis who specializes in sexual abuse, said our society often doesn't understand the negative impact a female sex offender can have on a teenage boy. Adult males especially, she said, often question use of the word "victim" when referring a young boy who was molested by an older woman.

Duncan, who has led seminars on women as sexual predators, said the idea of a sexy older woman teaching a younger man about sex is a myth.

A 14-year-old boy, she said, is sexually immature and insecure. His decision-making ability is not yet fully developed. Often, Duncan said, 14-year-olds have just started asking girls on dates. A woman who is an authority figure is putting herself in an aggressive lead role when she initiates sexual activity, Duncan said.

"This 14-year-old boy has been manipulated and used for her own gratification and power," Duncan said. "With sex offenders, whether it's a male or a female, it's always about power and control."

Reporters Elaine Silvestrini and Ray Reyes contributed to this report. Reporter Mike Wells can be reached at (813) 259-7839 or mwells@tampatrib.com. Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813) 259-7698 or tkrause@tampatrib.com.

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