Police: Ex-Bethpage teacher accused of having sex with student on school trip

A former Bethpage High School teacher has been accused of having sex with a student while on a school trip.

News 12 Staff

Oct 7, 2019, 9:09 PM

Updated 1,656 days ago

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A former Bethpage High School teacher has been accused of having sex with a student while on a school trip.
Joseph Gallagher, 28, a former choir teacher, was charged for a second time for allegedly having sexual contact with an underage student.
Police in Swatara Township, Pennsylvania, announced the charges on their website saying that in May, Gallagher had sexual relations with a juvenile at the Sheraton Hotel in Harrisburg. He was arrested and charged with sexual assault and other charges last month.
These latest charges come on the heels of a case in Nassau County where police arrested Gallagher in June for an alleged similar incident with an underage student on Long Island.
Lilly Marczak took choir with Gallagher, but didn't go on the Pennsylvania trip to Hershey Park. Now she says she's glad she did not go.
"Piecing it back in my mind, he did some weird things in class," says Marczak.
After Gallagher's initial arrest by Nassau County police in June, he was fired by the Bethpage School District. Now some are left to wonder how these alleged crimes could have happened in the first place.
There was no answer at Gallagher's Smithtown home Monday. Calls to his attorneys and the Bethpage School District were not returned.
Pennsylvania authorities say Gallagher is free after posting $50,000 bond.
 


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