The case of a Leroy High School teacher accused of having sex with a minor was sent to a Washington County Grand Jury during what was supposed to be a preliminary hearing, Tuesday, July 24.

Charlene Schmitz, 54, was arrested by Washington County deputies Friday, June 22, at her Carson Road residence in Leroy and charged with second degree rape and second degree sodomy for her alleged affair with one of her ninth-grade students.

Tuesday, Schmitz reportedly waived her preliminary hearing and District Judge Jerry Turner forwarded her case to be heard by a Washington County Grand Jury. The next grand jury will convene in August, but it was unknown at press time whether Schmitz' case would be heard during that session.

At the request of the district attorney's office last week, Judge Turner issued a gag order on law enforcement officials and agents of either party, preventing them from discussing the facts of the case with any members of the media which may influence and/or prejudice potential jurors.

Following the June 22 arrest of Schmitz, a media frenzy took place, with the Washington County Sheriff's Department at the center of it. Due to some misunderstandings among investigators, some false information was given out early on. Sheriff Stringer later attempted to correct the misinformation, but some of it continued to be used by various local and regional media.

According to Sheriff Stringer, his department had been alerted to the alleged affair by a parent of the juvenile who discovered sexually explicit e-mails, allegedly sent by the teacher, on the child's computer. Some media outlets reported that Schmitz had confessed to the affair, which was discovered to be untrue. She maintains her innocence.