Newly released interrogation footage shows Alicia Hughes, a 31-year-old Indiana high school secretary and mother of three, sobbing in a police interview room as she admits to a sexual relationship with a teenage student.

The video, shared Saturday, captures the moment Hughes confesses that her husband discovered her in bed with an 18-year-old student on Valentine's Day.

Hughes now faces five counts of child seduction. Each charge carries up to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine, the NY Post reported.

What the Footage Reveals

Hughes initially told the interviewing officer that the sexual relationship began after the student turned 18, insisting "not before he was 18." When the officer pressed her with a simple question, "Are you sure about that?", the story began to unravel.

Hughes admitted that "the physical thing … has been going on since the end of January" and told police, "This is the third time that I've been with him." But court documents paint a different picture, alleging the student had sex with Hughes at least five times.

She also initially denied involvement with any other students, telling police, "I never slept with him" in reference to a 17-year-old boy. She later acknowledged meeting the child at a Dollar General and sending him pictures. When the walls closed in, she asked for her lawyer.

Before being handcuffed, Hughes offered a final, self-pitying summary of her situation: "And that's where I'm at. And now I'm here."

The Valentine's Day Discovery

The chain of events started when Hughes' husband came home on Valentine's Day and found her in bed with the 18-year-old student. Hughes then called the police and accused her husband of attacking her. Just days later, the husband filed for divorce and emergency custody of their three children.

During the interrogation, Hughes described her husband's reaction as "justified," acknowledging he had been harmed "physically and mentally" by her actions. That moment of clarity did not extend to her own conduct with the students in question.

It is not clear whether the husband faces any charges related to the Valentine's Day confrontation.

The Legal Road Ahead

Hughes was booked at the Randolph County Jail on a $25,000 bond. The court found probable cause for her charges, though an initial hearing scheduled for Feb. 20 was canceled.

The case now moves forward with a hearing on pre-trial motions set for April 16, followed by a pre-trial conference on May 7 and a jury trial scheduled for June 15.

Superintendent Neal Adams confirmed that Hughes "has been removed from all duties with students pending the outcome of the legal process." She had been employed by the Randolph Eastern School Corporation.

A Pattern That Demands Honesty

Every few weeks, another story surfaces of a school employee exploiting a student. And every time, the same uncomfortable reality reasserts itself: the institutions entrusted with children's safety failed to prevent it.

There is a particular cultural discomfort around cases like this one. When a female school employee sexually exploits a male student, the coverage tends to soften. The language gets gentler. The word "affair" creeps in where "abuse" belongs. Commenters crack jokes. The gravity evaporates.

It shouldn't. Indiana law calls this child seduction for a reason. A school employee who leverages her position to pursue a sexual relationship with a student, whether that student is 17 or 18, has violated a duty of care that exists precisely because the power imbalance is real. The tears in the interrogation room don't change that. The confession doesn't mitigate it. The fact that she's a mother of three makes it worse, not more sympathetic.

Five counts. Up to six years each. The court dates are set. Whatever story Hughes tells herself about how she ended up in handcuffs, the law has a simpler version.

She was the adult in the building. She forgot what that meant.