A 10-year-old alleged victim testified Wednesday in the case against Matthew Schlegel, a former third-grade teacher in Anne Arundel County, who is accused of sexually abusing multiple students.

The girl claims Schlegel inappropriately touched her while she was his student. She alleged the assault happened while she was at her desk, when she would go to his desk for help, and when he would hug her.

Schlegel, 45, a former math teacher at Severna Park Elementary School, is on trial for allegedly sexually abusing eight students during class between August 2022 and March 2024. He is facing 33 counts of assault and sexual abuse of a minor.

The girl testified that two weeks after Schlegel was removed from school, she was at another alleged victim's house, and the girls wrote down possible reasons why he left, with one being the inappropriate touching.

An alleged victim's mother testified that she found the note on her daughter's iPad.

The trial is scheduled to continue until June 17.

Defense pushes back on alleged victim

The defense emphasized that these girls are friends and were interested in "solving the mystery" of what happened to Schlegel. They also suggested the girls couldn't tell their parents they were "joking around."

The alleged victim said this was not a joke. She added that she was afraid of getting in trouble and didn't report the touching earlier because she was scared. 

The alleged victim's mom said when she found out, her "stomach sank and she felt sick." She and other parents went to the principal that night. 

She said her daughter was crying, repeating, "It's true, it's true."

Schlegel removed from classroom in 2024  

The Anne Arundel County Public School district said Schlegel was removed from the classroom on March 15, 2024, immediately after they were notified of the sexual abuse allegations.  

A district spokesperson said Schlegel had been employed with them since 2008. He became a teacher at Severna Park Elementary in 2016. 

The mother of one of the children said that when parents were notified of Schlegel's removal, she was initially concerned because he was a favorite among the children.

The mother told the jury that her daughter is "not the same child that she was before her third-grade year."

9-year-old student testifies

A 9-year-old student took the stand on May 22. She described how girls would often be behind Schlegel's desk with him while getting help with math. 

She said other students could not see what was happening "from the waist down" behind the desk. Detectives say that's when most of the abuse took place.