Teacher Accused Of Sex Abuse Indicted On 55 Charges In Anne Arundel: Report

SEVERNA PARK, MD — A former teacher already facing sex abuse charges was indicted on 55 counts Friday in Anne Arundel County, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Twenty of those charges are felonies for the 44-year-old Matthew Scott Banks Schlegel of Severna Park, court records show.

Schlegel was arrested at his home on May 16 and accused of abusing eight of his female students at Severna Park Elementary School. He previously faced 36 charges ranging from second-degree assault to sex abuse of minors. Court records allege that the encounters happened from August 2022 through March 2024.

Though the number of charges has increased, The Sun said the number of accusers remains the same.

Schlegel's previous case file is listed as closed with the earlier charges being lumped into the larger indictment.

The felony charges are 11 counts of sex abuse of a minor and nine counts of third-degree sex offense, the new case file says.

The alleged victims accused Schlegel of touching them inappropriately, the charging documents said.

Witnesses reported seeing "the victims on Schlegel's lap during class," the documents said.

"Our school system immediately reassigned Mr. Schlegel and he no longer works in any capacity in the system where students are present," Anne Arundel County Public Schools spokesperson Bob Mosier told Patch in a May 16 email.

Schlegel has worked for AACPS since 2008. He worked at Severna Park Elementary from 2016 to this year.

"This is an issue that has had a dramatic impact on this school community since the first allegation came to light months ago," Mosier said. "We also have provided – and continue to provide – resources for students and staff at the school."

The Sun said Schlegel was denied his house arrest request and is being held without bond at the Jennifer Road Detention Center in Annapolis.

Patch requested a comment from Schlegel's attorneys. They have not yet replied. We will update this story if they respond.

To see more reactions to Schlegel's case, read The Sun's story. Only subscribers of The Sun and The Capital can access the article, however.

Anybody with an Anne Arundel County Public Library card number can read The Sun's story at this link by searching "Matthew Schlegel."

Related:

• Teacher Denied Bond In Severna Park Elementary Sex Abuse Case: Courts
• Severna Park Elementary Teacher Abused 8 Students: Charging Docs
• Teacher Removed From School, Misconduct Investigated In AACPS: Reports