INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The State of Florida vs. Kaitlyn Hunt case will go before a jury in September, according to court records.
Hunt will face the court beginning Sept. 9. A jury is expected to be called in the weeks leading up to the trial’s start.
Hunt is the 18-year-old Sebastian River High School student accused of having a sexual relationship with her then-14-year-old girlfriend.
She was arrested in February, but her case did not gain media attention until May when her family took to social media networks in an attempt to pressure the State Attorney’s Office to drop the charges.
State Attorney Bruce Colton offered a plea deal that would have had Hunt plead to one count of child abuse and serve no time in prison. A judge would have decided whether to label her a felon.
Hunt declined the plea deal and, instead, decided to face a jury of her peers.
She faces two felony counts of lewd and lascivious battery on a child between the ages of 12 and 16.
If convicted, Hunt could serve up to 15 years in prison and be labeled a sexual offender. Under Florida’s Romeo and Juliet law, Hunt could petition the court to not label her as such.
