Teacher accused of sexually assaulting 15-year-old boy

43-year-old Rayna Culver is charged with sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child. She's on leave from her job as a Trenton school teacher amid allegations that she carried on a regular sexual relationship since 2016 with a 15-year-old boy whom she taught while at Rivera Middle School.

She allegedly took the boy in to live with her at her Burlington Township home after the boy was kicked out of his home. Culver's attorney, speaking to us by phone, says the boy is lying.

"He's a troubled young man that has completely made these allegations up," attorney Robin Lord said. "Had the prosecutor's office done one miniscule bit of investigation with respect to his background and what was going on in his life at the time. They would know what the reason for the fabrication was."

She wouldn't explain his reason, citing court restrictions involving juveniles. Court documents reportedly allege that the boy said he feared being kicked out of the house if he stopped having sex to which Culver's attorney responded: "It makes absolutely no sense. He wanted to live on the street. He didn't want discipline in his life and he did not want the supervision that he had in her house."

Culver, who is married, was in court back in May and was ordered to have no contact with the boy or anyone else under the age of 18 as the case progressed.

She wasn't home this afternoon and her neighbors declined to talk. But her attorney says Culver is a respected teacher who didn't deserve this.