NJ School District Faces Slew Of Teacher Sex Abuse Lawsuits: Report

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education has faced eight lawsuits – and has settled two of them for a combined $550,000 – in connection with decade-old sex abuse charges against a former teacher with connections to Bloomfield and Caldwell, a report says.

Nicole Dufault, a former teacher at Columbia High School in Maplewood, was accused of engaging in sexual activity with six boys on multiple occasions between 2013 and 2014, some of which allegedly occurred on school property and in her car. All of the boys were between 14 and 15-years-old at the time of the incidents, prosecutors said.

In 2015, Dufault – a Bloomfield native who lived in Caldwell at the time of the allegations – claimed that a brain condition affected her judgment. See related article: NJ Teacher Blames Brain Condition For Alleged Sex Crimes

Dufault pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated criminal sexual contact in 2020. As part of the plea agreement, Dufault forfeited her government employment, gave up her teaching licenses, registered as a sex offender pursuant to Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life, prosecutors said. See Related: Former Essex County Teacher Pleads Guilty, Had Sex With Students

Since then, the South Orange-Maplewood school district has faced a slew of lawsuits related to the abuse allegations, according to a recent report from Transparency NJ.

Of these cases, two reached settlements last year: one for $350,000 and another for $200,000. Another pending lawsuit was filed in 2024, and five have been consolidated and stayed pending an appeal, the report said, citing sources acquired through an OPRA request.

The two settled lawsuits have claimed that school officials were informed of these improper activities, but failed to take meaningful action. Both cases also alleged racial discrimination, asserting that the teacher specifically targeted Black male students with disabilities, Transparency NJ reported.

When contacted by Patch, a spokesperson for the school district declined to comment on the lawsuits.

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