FREEHOLD — A former high school teacher and girls’ basketball coach has been sentenced to five and a half years in state prison after admitting to a sexual relationship with a student, authorities said.
Raymond S. Santiago said the sentence was imposed in Monmouth County Superior Court following a hearing before Henry P. Butehorn.
Justin McGhee, 36, of Ocean Township, previously worked at Middletown High School North, where he also served as head coach of the girls’ basketball team.
Under the court’s order, McGhee must permanently surrender his public employment and teaching credentials. He is also required to register under New Jersey’s Megan’s Law, will be subject to Parole Supervision for Life, and is barred from having any contact with the victim. In addition, he is prohibited from entering school property at Middletown High School North.
Investigators with the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Bureau and the Middletown Township Police Department determined the illegal conduct began in late 2024. McGhee was taken into custody without incident on January 28, 2025, and later placed on administrative leave.
In November 2025, he pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault.
During sentencing, Judge Butehorn rejected a defense request to impose a lesser, third-degree sentence of three years, pointing to the gravity of the offense and McGhee’s position of authority within the school.
“We as a society bestow a virtually sacred trust upon teachers, whose obligations to educate and protect their students should remain their utmost priority,” Santiago said in a statement. “Those who violate that trust for their own selfish indulgences don’t just harm their victims and their families; they harm their colleagues, their school, their district, and society at large.”
The case was prosecuted by Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Sevan Biramian of the Special Victims Bureau. McGhee was represented by defense attorney Mitchell Ansell of Ocean Township.
