The Wisconsin case grew from a school report to police into multiple criminal charges, a suspension without pay and an ongoing investigation.
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — A 22-year-old North High School special education teacher has been charged after investigators said she had sexual contact with two minor students, a case that began with a school report and now includes multiple felony counts, a cash bond and a May court hearing.
The case matters beyond one arrest because it centers on alleged misconduct by a school employee with students she was supposed to help supervise and support. Police say multiple victims have been identified, though the criminal complaint filed Monday focused on allegations involving two students. The Eau Claire Area School District said it contacted law enforcement as soon as it learned of the allegation and suspended the teacher without pay. The charges put the case into an early but serious court phase, with investigators still signaling that more information could emerge.
According to the criminal complaint, the investigation moved quickly after a school resource officer at North High School learned of an alleged inappropriate relationship involving staff and a student on Wednesday, March 25. Police arrested Nadia Horn that day. By Monday, March 30, she appeared in Eau Claire County Court for an initial appearance after prosecutors filed one count of second-degree sexual assault of a child, two counts of child enticement and two counts of sexual assault of a child by a person who works or volunteers with children. The complaint says Horn told investigators she worked as a special education teacher at North and co-taught World Studies. It also says she acknowledged sexual contact with one student at her apartment and told police, “I made a mistake,” a line that became central to later coverage because it placed her own words inside the first public court filing.
The complaint describes a pattern of contact that investigators say extended beyond school grounds. One student told police Horn bought him a cell phone, began communicating with him on Snapchat and sent him what the complaint described as revealing pictures. The filing says Horn later told investigators she became close to one student because he needed support. Prosecutors also allege she had sexual contact with a second student. Local reporting on the complaint said both students were minors and attended North High School. The filing also says that in March she brought the two students and a third student to her apartment after saying they needed a ride from somewhere, and that she gave them wine after they asked for it. Surveillance video from the apartment building, according to the complaint, showed Horn and three teenage boys entering the building on March 15 and leaving the next morning. Those details are allegations in the charging document, not findings by a jury.
School and police statements added a broader picture but left some questions open. Police said all known victims identified at that stage were North High School students and minors, but Lt. Mark Pieper of the Eau Claire Police Department said it was too early to say how many victims there may ultimately be. That means the public record still may not reflect the full scope of the investigation. The district’s statement to families said administrators contacted law enforcement immediately after learning of the allegation on March 25 and said the district would continue cooperating with police. Superintendent Mike Johnson called the allegation “deeply troubling” and asked the school community to respect the privacy of students and families and avoid rumor and speculation. The district also said student services staff were available for children or employees struggling with the news, a sign that the case had immediate effects inside the school long before any trial date is set.
The legal process is still at a very early stage. At Monday’s hearing, a judge set Horn’s cash bond at $15,000, and local court coverage said she posted bond shortly afterward and was released from jail. She is scheduled to return to court on May 20 for the next hearing. If the charges remain as filed, the case will move into the standard pretrial sequence, including further hearings, potential motions and decisions by prosecutors about whether to amend the complaint if additional evidence is developed. Police have said the investigation is ongoing, which leaves open the possibility of further charges or additional allegations being tested in court. For now, the complaint serves as the most detailed public account of what investigators say happened, but it is still one side of a case that has only just entered the judicial process.
The setting has made the case especially unsettling in Eau Claire. North High School is not a private or remote workplace but a regular public school where students, parents and staff expect clear boundaries and adult oversight. That is why the first public statements from police and the district focused less on dramatic language than on process: how the allegation reached a school resource officer, how quickly administrators alerted police, and how the district would respond while the case unfolds. The public details released so far are narrow but stark: a young teacher, minor students, an apartment off campus, social media messages, alleged gifts and a video record that investigators say supports parts of the timeline. What has not been publicly explained is whether more students will be named in later filings or whether defense lawyers will challenge the way investigators interpreted those contacts and statements.
As of Tuesday, Horn had been charged, released on bond and suspended without pay, while police said the investigation remained active. The next milestone is the May 20 court hearing, which should offer the first clearer sign of whether the case stays at five counts or grows beyond the initial complaint.
Author note: Last updated March 31, 2026.