FREEHOLD – A Freehold Township High School teacher drove more than 500 miles back to New Jersey and surrendered after learning police were investigating allegations that he sexually assaulted a teenage student. That decision weighed in Jesse L. Heubel’s favor, but it was not enough to persuade a judge to release him from jail.
Heubel, 37, an Englishtown resident and longtime coach, will remain detained at the Monmouth County Correctional Institution while facing nine second-degree charges arising from more than 30 alleged sexual encounters with the student.
Superior Court Judge Marc C. Lemieux found that releasing Heubel could place the student, the wife who reported him to police and Heubel himself at risk.
Assistant Prosecutor Sevan Biramian of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Bureau described the accusations as a months-long pattern in which Heubel allegedly used his position as a teacher to gain the student’s trust and manipulate her.
“This wasn’t a one-time event,” Biramian said. “This was repetitive conduct that was long-term.”
Wife’s Discovery Led To Investigation
According to evidence discussed during the July 22 detention hearing, Heubel’s wife found messages of a sexual nature involving her husband and a Freehold Township High School student on his cellphone. She confronted Heubel and recorded a conversation in which he allegedly admitted engaging in sexual acts with the student.
“He asked her not to go to the police,” Lemieux said. “Obviously, she went anyway.”
After learning police had been contacted, Heubel reached out to the student and warned her that authorities might come to her home. Defense attorney Tom Carver said there was no evidence Heubel did anything more than provide that warning.
“There is no indication or information to suggest that he tried to sway her to not cooperate, to lie or impede the investigation,” Carver said.
Biramian argued that the student could nevertheless remain vulnerable to Heubel’s influence if he were released. He cited the alleged months-long manipulation, repeated communications and what he characterized as Heubel’s continuing fixation on the student.
Heubel’s wife became one of the prosecution’s most important witnesses, complicating the defense proposal that he be released to the Englishtown home the couple shared.
“I can report to the court that he can go home to the marital residence in Englishtown,” Carver said.
The suggestion appeared to catch Lemieux by surprise.
“She’s going to take him home?” the judge asked.
“He’s allowed to go home, Judge,” Carver responded. “Whether the relationship remains intact or not, that I can’t indicate to the court.”
Carver clarified that Heubel’s wife was no longer staying there and that his client would return to an empty house. Lemieux remained troubled by the plan, saying the emotions surrounding the case could “get really ugly really fast” and potentially affect her safety and the investigation.
Allegations Began Inside School
As previously reported, investigators allege Heubel first kissed the student after school inside a classroom shortly after Thanksgiving 2025, when she was 16. The conduct allegedly escalated in February 2026 to sexual penetration inside the school’s drama classroom.
Authorities contend the sexual activity occurred more than 30 times through June at locations in Freehold Township, Red Bank, Englishtown and Manalapan. The student also told investigators that she repeatedly resisted during one encounter before Heubel allegedly forced himself upon her.
Heubel faces four counts of second-degree sexual assault involving a 16- or 17-year-old over whom he allegedly exercised supervisory or disciplinary authority, four counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child and one count of second-degree sexual assault by force or coercion.
Carver did not contest probable cause for purposes of the hearing, allowing the judge to find sufficient grounds for the charges to proceed without determining guilt.
Arguments For Release
Carver argued that Heubel’s decision to return from western Pennsylvania showed he was unlikely to flee or interfere with the case.
“He had the choice to turn west as opposed to east and drive away,” Carver said. “He didn’t harm himself. He didn’t harm anybody else. He didn’t flee.”
The court’s public safety assessment gave Heubel the lowest possible scores for failure to appear and risk of new criminal activity. It did not flag him as presenting a risk of new violent criminal activity, although it recommended against release because of the charges.
Carver said Heubel taught in Freehold Township for 11 years and coached football, wrestling and track during a coaching career spanning more than 20 years. He was also involved with the school’s drama and automobile clubs. The attorney said no other similar allegation was known to have been made against him.
During the hearing, a row of teenage boys sat in the rear of the courtroom, while a row of teenage girls sat closer to the front. Their connection to Heubel or the case was not identified in court.
Concern For Heubel’s Safety
Lemieux cited evidence indicating that Heubel had allegedly told the student he would take his own life if the conduct were discovered. The judge said exposure of the allegations and the possible loss of Heubel’s marriage, career and standing in the community created concern for his safety, as well as potential risks to his wife and the student.
Biramian added that authorities knew of firearms at the marital residence and at the Pennsylvania home of Heubel’s relatives.
Carver countered that Heubel’s voluntary return undermined concerns that he would harm himself or anyone else. He suggested a mental health evaluation, which Lemieux said the defense could later submit as evidence of changed circumstances.
Judge Weighs Competing Factors
In announcing his decision, Lemieux focused on the authority Heubel allegedly exercised over the student and the trust placed in him by families and school officials.
“He had the trust of many, many kids, many, many parents, many, many school officials,” Lemieux said. “Those same people were all manipulated by the defendant.”
Lemieux acknowledged that Heubel’s lack of a criminal history, low risk scores and voluntary return favored release. He also found little evidence of attempted obstruction, noting that Heubel did not tell the student to lie or refuse to cooperate.
The judge ultimately found those factors were outweighed by the seriousness and duration of the allegations and the potential risks to the student, Heubel’s wife and Heubel himself. He ruled that the state had demonstrated by clear and convincing evidence that no release conditions could reasonably address those concerns.
Heubel is scheduled to return to court September 21 for a pre-indictment conference. He is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
