School Lunch Lady Hosted 'Sexual Encounters' With Teens at Sleepovers, Police Say

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A former cafeteria worker at Lacache Middle School in Chauvin, Louisiana, has been arrested on multiple charges of indecent behavior with a juvenile and contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile for allegedly hosting parties and sleepovers with teenage boys at her home.

The occasions allegedly entailed "sexual encounters" as well as the consumption of alcohol and the viewing of pornography, according to the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff's Office (TPSO).

Dawn Marie Baye, 38, of Chauvin, was arrested following several weeks into an investigation launched by the TPSO after it received a complaint from a concerned parent of one of the children involved.

According to the TPSO, on April 21 "deputies received information that multiple juveniles had gone to an adult female's house on several occasions whereas they consumed alcoholic beverages and watched pornography movies; furthermore, that there were sexual encounters. The ages of the boys were between 13 and 16 years of age.

"During the investigation, detectives learned that there were sleepovers at the adult female's residence during the time that these parties occurred."

Baye met some of the victims at the school where she worked. Following several interviews, "the facts of this investigation [were] very consistent along with... information that was shared on social media," the sheriff's office said.

Baye was interviewed by the TPSO on April 30 and later arrested for 10 counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile and eight counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile.

She was booked into the Terrebonne Parish Criminal Justice Complex and her bond was set at $50,000, the TPSO said.

Those with information relating to this investigation are being directed to contact the TPSO detectives at 1-985-876-2500.

"Sheriff Tim Soignet encourages parents to know where their minor children are and whose residence they are going to for a sleepover," the TPSO said.

Terrebonne Parish School District Superintendent Philip Martin told Louisiana's The Times of Houma | Thibodaux that Baye no longer works for the district.

Newsweek has contacted the Terrebonne Parish School District and Lacache Middle School for comment.

Back in October 2019, a former high school student filed a federal lawsuit against the St. Helens School District in Oregon alleging the district failed to protect her from sexual abuse by a teacher and track coach in 2017 and 2018.

The lawsuit claimed that Kyle Jarred Wroblewski sexually abused the teenager on multiple occasions over several months when she was 16 years old, and the district was negligent in taking actions to protect the student, The Oregonian reported at the time.

High school cafeteria in Connecticut September 2020
Milk cartons seen in the cafeteria of Connecticut's Stamford High School in September 2020. A former cafeteria worker in Louisiana was arrested for allegedly hosting parties and sleepovers with several teenage boys at her home. John Moore/Getty Images

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Soo Kim is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. She covers various lifestyle stories, specializing in travel, health, home/interior design and property/real estate. Soo covered the COVID-19 pandemic extensively from 2020 to 2022, including several interviews with the chief medical advisor to the president, Dr. Anthony Fauci. Soo has reported on various major news events, including the Black Lives Matter movement, the U.S. Capitol riots, the war in Afghanistan, the U.S. and Canadian elections, and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Soo is also a South Korea expert, covering the latest K-dramas—including the breakout hit Squid Game, which she has covered extensively, including from Seoul, the South Korean capital—as well as Korean films, such as the Golden Globe and Oscar-nominated Past Lives, and K-pop news, to interviews with the biggest Korean actors, such as Lee Jung-jae from Squid Game and Star Wars, and Korean directors, such as Golden Globe and Oscar nominee Celine Song. Soo is the author of the book How to Live Korean, which is available in 11 languages, and co-author of the book Hello, South Korea: Meet the Country Behind Hallyu. Before Newsweek, Soo was a travel reporter and commissioning editor for the award-winning travel section of The Daily Telegraph (a leading U.K. national newspaper) for nearly a decade from 2010, reporting on the latest in the travel industry, from travel news, consumer travel and aviation issues to major new openings and emerging destinations. Soo is a graduate of Binghamton University in New York and the journalism school of City University in London, where she earned a Masters in international journalism. You can get in touch with Soo by emailing s.kim@newsweek.com . Follow her on Instagram at @miss.soo.kim or X, formerly Twitter, at @MissSooKim .Languages spoken: English and Korean


Soo Kim is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. She covers various lifestyle stories, specializing in Read more