HUDSON, Wis. — A disgraced Wisconsin teacher accused of sexually assaulting her 11-year-old student said Thursday that charges against her should be dropped because the preteen’s text messages weren’t specific enough about how they touched each other.
A judge disagreed, saying that Madison Bergmann — who made headlines when she was accused of “kissing” the fifth-grader just weeks before her wedding — must stand trial on charges that include first-degree sexual assault of a child, child enticement and sexual misconduct by a school staff member.
Intimate messages exchanged between the couple were also revealed in court, in which the 24-year-old teacher allegedly said she wanted to “lick” the boy’s abs and that he liked touching her breasts.
The 24-year-old faces up to 178 years in prison if convicted on all counts.
Bergmann arrives at court flanked by her father. She wears braids in her hair, a black top and light trousers.
She cried as she took the stand during a hearing on her defense team’s motion to dismiss the charges.
A lawyer for Bergman read excerpts from his racy text messages with the alleged victim and argued that his behavior did not constitute sexual assault because the boy used the word “breast” to describe their physical contact.
“The basis of this motion is that there is no probable cause in the complaint in one specific area,” attorney Joseph Tamburino told the court, “and that is the area of ’sexual contact of an intimate part.'”
“Under Wisconsin law, you have to touch an intimate part for it to be sexual contact,” Tamburino said. “What are those parts? A human being’s chest, buttocks, anus, groin, scrotum, penis, vagina or pubic area. The law doesn’t say that’s the ‘chest’ or ‘chest area.’”
In a text message, the 11-year-old allegedly wrote, “You were touching my breasts a lot.” He argued that the word “breasts” was not enough to charge Bergmann with sexual assault.
But in the end, the judge said, “It would be absurd to require a child to use the same language that the state legislature has chosen for our laws.”
The judge then read more texts.
“I love having my hand on your chest. I could feel your heart beating so hard haha,” Bergmann reportedly wrote.
The boy reportedly replied, “Haha, it was beating so fast. I was so surprised and I loved it because you kept kissing me.”
“When everyone was cleaning up after reading, I was standing in front and you were there too, and I touched your chest,” Bergmann allegedly wrote. “When I grabbed your shirt and pulled you against me, oh my God… I want to lick your abs haha.”
The judge ruled that the word “breast” does not mean the boy was not assaulted.
Bergmann, a former fifth-grade teacher at River Crest Elementary School, was initially charged with first-degree sexual assault of a child.
Last month, she was charged with nine additional felonies: one count of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime, five counts of sexual misconduct by school personnel, two counts of child enticement causing mental or bodily harm, and one count of exposing a child to harmful material.
According to the criminal complaint, Bergmann’s alleged abuse of the 11-year-old boy came to light when the student’s mother overheard her son talking on the phone with the teacher. Suspicious, the parents checked the boy’s phone and allegedly found lewd messages between the two.
The disturbing message chain included messages from Bergmann that discussed multiple encounters in Hudson, Wisconsin’s classroom during lunch or after school. She allegedly told the child how much she liked him touching and “kissing” her.
According to the complaint, some of the alleged assaults even occurred in Bergmann’s classroom.
The boy’s angry father stormed into River Crest Elementary School with printed copies of the conversations, authorities said.
When police searched Bergmann’s classroom, they allegedly found a folder in his bag with the victim’s name on it. The folder allegedly contained handwritten notes detailing how they kissed and fondled each other.
Bergmann’s attorney did not respond to The Post’s requests for comment. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
