Former Palm Beach County middle school teacher faces charge of sexual battery on a child
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office took Miguel Benavente, 57, of Royal Palm Beach into custody July 15 on one count of sexual battery involving a minor. The agency said it is working to determine if there are additional victims.
According to the sheriff's statement, Benavente has worked for the school district since 1991, serving in various roles, including as a teacher. Palm Beach Post archives show he was named the district's Hispanic teacher of the year in 2005.
His work as a medical sciences teacher also garnered national recognition, with a panel of Hispanic leaders selecting him in 2003 for a national teacher of the year award. At the time, Benavente taught at Roosevelt Middle School in West Palm Beach, where he created a premedical program.
Benavente most recently has worked in an administrative position, the sheriff's office said.
In a statement released July 16, the district said it placed him on administrative leave pending the outcomes of both the criminal investigation and an internal review. He will not be permitted to have access to a school campus or interact with students, the school district said.
During a court hearing at the Palm Beach County Jail, County Judge Marni Bryson ordered that Benavente be held without bail and that he have no contact with minors, school district property or school district employees.
An attorney who represented Benavente in court was not immediately available for comment.
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PBSO: Alleged contact with student happened decades ago
According to an arrest report, the sheriff's office began investigating in June after being contacted by school district police regarding alleged sexual contact involving a minor that occurred during Benavente's time as a teacher.
A person who is now an adult described to authorities being groomed by Benavente as a child during visits to Benavente's home. The accuser described Benavente as a family friend and alleged that the sexual contact began when the accuser was 9 years old and lasted for about five years.
The accuser described seeing Benavente bring students from Roosevelt Middle to his home. Investigators said Benavente used school work as an excuse to bring other children to his home.
Sheriff's investigators reviewed a 2000 school police case involving another accuser who made sexual assault claims against Benavente. The other accuser described being assaulted at Benavente's home while the accuser was a student at Roosevelt Middle. Investigators said the accusers did not know each other but provided similar accounts of Benavente's behavior.
According to a sheriff's statement, Benavente did not face charges in the 2000 case because it had exceeded the statute of limitations. The child was over the age of 12 at the time of the alleged conduct.
Under Florida law, there is no statute of limitations on sexual assault crimes involving a victim under the age of 12. In 2020, Florida lawmakers passed "Donna's Law," which removed the statute of limitations on sexual assault cases involving minors on or after July 1 of that year, regardless of age.
Anyone with information on other victims is urged to contact Crime Stoppers of Palm Beach County at 1-800-458-TIPS (8477), or the School District Police Department at (561) 434-8700.
Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Former middle school teacher faces charge of sexual battery on a child
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