INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Kaitlyn Hunt, the older Sebastian River High School student accused of having sex with her then 14-year-old girlfriend, will now remain in jail until her trial, Judge Robert Pegg decided Tuesday after an hour-long court hearing.
Hunt, now 19, who previously had been free on bond pending her trial, was found to have violated the terms of her pre-trial release by continuing to maintain contact with the victim.
The State Attorney’s Office presented dozens of pieces of evidence, including lewd photographs, a disc with a lewd video of Hunt on it, and thousands of text messages exchanged between Hunt and the girl.
Judge Pegg said at the end of the hearing that there was “overwhelming” evidence that Hunt violated the pre-trial release conditions he had set. He ordered that Hunt be held in jail without bond until her trial, with her next court appearance a month from now.
Hunt turned herself into the County Jail Monday night on her own volition, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Hunt’s defense attorney, A. Julia Graves, urged the court to allow Hunt to remain free on bail but be placed under house arrest, and prohibited from the use of electronic communication devices, including iPods, the internet, and phones.
“She simply cannot be trusted,” Judge Pegg said.
The State Attorney’s Office also filed a new felony charge against Hunt. That charge is for transmitting lewd materials electronically to a child. Hunt is expected to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty to that charge on Sept. 23.
Hunt entered the courtroom in an orange jumpsuit, dabbing tears from her eyes as she caught sight of her father sitting in the front row behind her. He, too, wiped tears from his eyes.
Shortly before the hearing, Hunt’s defense attorney, A. Julia Graves filed an electronic motion agreeing to a revocation of Hunt’s bond. Judge Pegg, however, did not receive the motion before the court hearing and decided to push forward just the same.
“We’re ready to go,” he said.
This is the latest development in the continuing saga of Kaitlyn Hunt.
Last week, the State Attorney’s Office filed a written version of a plea deal offered to the young woman in July, which she declined at the time. The next day, prosecutors filed a notice of violation against Hunt, claiming she had not kept her promise to stay away from the now 15-year-old girl.
Instead of keeping away, which was a condition of her pre-trial release, the State Attorney’s Office contends she sent texts to the girl just about every day, sent the girl lewd photographs and videos of herself, and even arranged to secretly meet with the girl and continue their physical relationship.
The victim’s mom discovered an iPod authorities say Hunt put in the girl’s locker on her last day at Sebastian River High School – March 1 – before being transferred to the school district’s Alternative Learning Center.
That iPod, according to the State Attorney’s Office, had more than 20,000 files on it, including text messages, photos and videos Hunt sent the girl.
According to court records, Hunt also attempted to keep the victim from telling the truth to investigators. The victim told authorities Hunt told her to lie about their encounters at Sebastian River High.
Hunt was 18 when she started dating her fellow schoolmate, who was then 14 years old, according to authorities.
The pair engaged in sexual activity, which according to authorities took place in a restroom at Sebastian River High School and Hunt’s home.
When the minor’s parents discovered the nature of the relationship, they went to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office, which prompted an investigation and Hunt’s subsequent arrest in February.
She was released from the county jail on $5,000 bond.
Hunt was initially charged with two felony counts of lewd and lascivious battery on a child between 12 and 16 years old, which carry a 15-year maximum prison sentence.
Before the allegations of violating the terms of her pre-trial release, the State Attorney’s Office offered two separate plea deals. Both of which were declined before the State Attorney’s Office rescinded the latest one.
The first plea deal, rejected in May, called for Hunt to plead to a third-degree felony child abuse charge – a lesser felony than the two second-degree felony charges of lewd and lascivious battery on a child 12 to 16 years old.
In exchange for the plea, Hunt would have served two years of community control – which is similar to house arrest – followed by one year of probation. Under community control, she would have been allowed to leave her home to go to school, work, the doctor’s office and other such appointments, and to church. The judge would have decided whether to adjudicate guilt.
The second plea deal, verbally offered in July and again in a written format last week, called for Hunt to plead no contest to two counts of battery and one count of interfering with the custody of a child.
Instead of prison or jail time, she would have served three years’ probation and performed 150 hours community service. She would also have to abide by an 11 p.m. curfew for the first year of the probation. Hunt also would have had to refrain from contacting the victim and maintain a distance of at least 500 feet from the girl.
In exchange for meeting those, and other, conditions, Hunt would not have had a felony conviction on her record, nor a sex offense charge or label. And, at the end of her 3-year probation, Hunt could have petitioned the court to seal or expunge the battery and custody charges, essentially wiping her record clean.