A
Raleigh dance teacher charged with several sex crimes and child abuse in 2024
accepted a plea deal in New Hanover County court on Monday.
Elissa
Edwards, 43, pleaded guilty to one count of felony child abuse by causing
serious physical injury.
Edwards initially faced charges in New Hanover and Pender counties.
In Pender County, she was indicted on Jan. 28, 2025, for sex offenses where she was at least 6 years older than the victim and for indecent liberties with a child.
In New Hanover County, she was indicted on March 10, 2025, on two counts of statutory rape and two counts of indecent liberties with a child.
On Monday, Edwards was offered a plea arrangement and pleaded guilty to one felony charge of child abuse. The other charges were dropped in exchange for pleading guilty to felony child abuse, according to court documents.
Due
to no prior criminal record, her six-to-eight-month prison sentence was
suspended in lieu of probation. She will serve three years of supervised
probation, which will be transferred to Onslow County.
Edwards
was arrested on July 18, 2024, in Raleigh, following allegations of misconduct
involving children at multiple dance studios across North Carolina.
The
charges stem from years of abuse of a former student. The victim provided an
impact statement in court, and the charges date back to 2007. The victim was 13
years old at the time.
The abuse was first reported in 2018, but the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office did not pursue charges due to a lack of evidence.
When
the victim learned that Edwards was moving to Raleigh to work in a dance
studio, she took to social media to warn the dance community.
Edwards
will not be allowed to work with anyone under the age of 18 in any capacity
under her plea agreement.
Source: www.wral.com
