Ex-Marlboro Teacher Accused Of Molesting Student Sues Girl's Parents

MARLBORO, NJ — A former Marlboro Township teacher accused of molesting one of her students is now suing the student’s parents, school officials and people who spoke negatively about her online over the claims.

Jenna Sciabica, who was a special education teacher at Marlboro Memorial Middle School, was accused at an April Board of Education meeting of molesting one of her students in a school hallway on March 13, an incident authorities said was caught on camera.

In April, Sciabica was charged with harassment-offensive touching after the girl’s parents made their accusations public at the school board meeting. The parents filed a lawsuit against Sciabica, the school district and several other people in connection with the incident in May.

In their lawsuit, the parents allege Sciabica of holding sexually explicit conversations with students and allege that these conversations were used to “groom” their daughter (referred to as “L.T.” in the lawsuit) into accepting Sciabica touching her.

In addition to Sciabica, the school district, the school board and Marlboro Superintendent Michael Ballone, the parents’ lawsuit names several people who are accused of lying about the incident and investigation, and of putting out defamatory and/or libelous statements in connection with the matter.

Sciabica resigned from her teaching position in March.

In her counterclaims filed on Oct. 25, Sciabica accuses the girl’s parents of being “opportunistic” and alleges the lawsuit was filed “in a transparent attempt to shake down the Marlboro School District for some cash.”

The claims against Sciabica have not only cost her her job and potentially her career, but have led to death threats and “numerous unwanted communications” from “actual pedophiles and creepy men,” Sciabica alleges.

Sciabica alleges L.T.’s parents demanded the Marlboro School District pay them $5 million sometime between March and April or they would file a lawsuit.

In addition, the countersuit claims that L.T.’s mother was involved in at least four other lawsuits before the one naming Sciabica, including a suit against the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation over an alleged slip and fall (which was dismissed pre-answer), a class action lawsuit that both she and her husband joined against the City of New York and the FDNY for unpaid wages, and a lawsuit against a school district in Staten Island.

Sciabica also accuses the teacher who made the groping allegation against her of doing so out of jealousy.

According to the counterclaims, the March 13 interaction between Sciabica and L.T. consisted of Sciabica pulling at some fabric in the chest area of L.T.’s shirt and tapping L.T.’s chest “with one hand, twice.”

During the interaction, Sciabica said the teacher who made the groping allegation against her stood a foot away from them, behind L.T.’s back.

Sciabica says that from that position, the teacher “could not have seen L.T.’s facial expression or the nature of Ms. Sciabica’s minimal contact with L.T.’s chest area,” but the teacher later reported Sciabica groping L.T. to the Marlboro Township Police Department and Vice Principal Loreen Labuza.

Sciabica alleges the teacher’s actions were motivated by jealousy, as the teacher also provides in-home tutoring to L.T.’s family but was paid less than Sciabica.

After the teacher reported the incident to Labuza, Sciabica said Labuza called L.T.’s mother to report that L.T. had been “groped and fondled by a schoolteacher in the hallway,” and told L.T.’s mother that the teacher involved was Sciabica.

The day after the incident occurred, Sciabica said she received a notice from Ballone suspending her without pay.

On March 20, she resigned from her position “under extreme duress” and “facing significant pressure from Ballone, Marlboro, and the community,” the counterclaims said.

On March 22, Sciabica said Ballone sent a letter to the NJ Board of Examiners claiming she “resigned on or about March 22, 2024, having been accused of unbecoming conduct. Ms. Sciabica was accused of touching the breasts of an eighth-grade student in the hallway during the school day. Ms. Sciabica simultaneously made a comment about the student’s breasts while touching them. This incident was captured on security footage.”

Sciabica’s counterclaim alleges Ballone’s letter “went far beyond what was required” and “unnecessarily overdramatized the accusations against Ms. Sciabica.”

Sciabica’s counterclaim also says she had a close relationship with L.T.’s mother before the March 13 incident, where they would text and Sciabica would often come over to L.T.’s home to tutor L.T.’s younger brothers.

The countersuit describes a March 5 trip Sciabica made to the home for tutoring.

Sciabica says L.T.’s mother asked Sciabica multiple times to look at L.T.’s dress for the eighth-grade dance because L.T. wanted to try it on and show it to her. The dress was too big, however, Sciabica says in her counterclaims, she helped L.T. adjust the dress while L.T.’s mother was watching.

“Adding insult to injury, this lawsuit was filed by a parent she considered a friend,” the counterclaims read. “A parent who encouraged Ms. Sciabica’s involvement in L.T.’s life and who repeatedly expressed her gratitude that Ms. Sciabica was so unwavering in her commitment to her children’s education and well-being.”

Since the allegations against Sciabica have been made public, Sciabica said she has lost her tenure and may also lose her pension over the charge of harassment-offensive touching.

“Her teaching license is on the line, she will likely never again work in a profession that brought her joy,” the counterclaims read. “Ms. Sciabica cannot sit idly by while her life is torn apart, and she cannot condone defamatory and tortious conduct aimed at causing her further ruin.”

Related:

• Teacher Molested Girl On Camera In Marlboro School Hallway, Mom Says
• Marlboro Middle School Teacher Charged With Offensive Touching Of Student
• 'Outrageous And Defamatory' Accusations Against Marlboro Teacher False, Attorney Says
• Parents Who Accused Marlboro Teacher Of Molesting Student File Lawsuit