MACON, Ga. — A former Bibb County middle-school teacher appeared before a judge Friday and asked for a court hearing on the child-molestation charges against him.
Charles Jackson was charged Thursday with two counts of statutory rape and one count of aggravated molestation.
The Bibb County Sheriff's Office says Jackson had an improper relationship with a former student.
He taught at the Ballard Hudson Middle School, where he was also baseball coach and head of the school's Junior Leadership Program. He is the school's 2022-2023 teacher of the year.
Jackson made a first appearance Friday in Bibb County's magistrate court.
The judge read the charges against Jackson, and he said he understood the charges.
He asked for a commitment hearing, where investigators must describe the evidence against him.
No date has been set yet for that hearing.
But Jackson appeared confused during part of the hearing. He told the judge he didn't expect to appear in court Friday and wasn't prepared.
A public defender represented him.
The magistrate court on Friday released the arrest warrants for Jackson, with new details of the charges.
According to the warrants:
- The first two counts, statutory rape and molestation, occurred at 1070 Anthony Road, which is Ballard Hudson Middle. They happened sometime between January and May.
- The third count, statutory rape, happened in November, at a location on Churchill Street, about two miles off campus.
- The alleged victim, a girl, was 14 at the time of the first offenses and 15 last month.
13WMAZ reached out to Bibb County Schools on Friday. They released the following statement:
“The District is cooperating fully with the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office on the investigation. As of December 15, 2022, Mr. Jackson is no longer an employee of Bibb County School District.”