ST. CHARLES PARISH, La. — St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg Champagne announced that the 28-year-old who used fraudulent paperwork to enroll at Hahnville High School just wanted to learn English.
"It’s not the crime of the century. We are not here to bang on these people. You can’t enroll in a school if you’re ten years over the age to do so," Champagne said.
Champagne understands parents are likely concerned a 28-year-old was in school with their children but he says they have no information that there was any nefarious purpose other than the young woman wanted to be proficient in English.
Martha Jessenia Gutierrez-Serrano was enrolled in the high school since the beginning of the last school year and was placed in the ninth grade because she didn't know any English.
"She minded her own business. She did her schoolwork. She caused no trouble. She was not a disciplinary problem. She violated no laws in the community that we had to deal with her. As far as we know, she did nothing inappropriately. She merely attended school," Champagne said.
St Charles Parish Superintendent Dr. Ken Oertling said that Gutierrez-Serrano's enrollment was done in line with state law.
In May, the school district received a tip that Gutierrez-Serrano may not have been 17. Officials did not reveal where the tip came from.
Detectives arrested Gutierrez-Serrano and her mother, 46-year-old Marta Elizeth Serrano-Alvarado, on Tuesday for injuring public records. The younger Serrano-Alvarado was able to enroll using a fraudulent passport and birth certificate.
They were released within hours after their arrest after posting bail.
Champagne says parents are likely concerned a 28-year-old was in school with their children but he says there was nothing nefarious with her enrollment.
"There was nothing that occurred inappropriately or illegally other than the falsified documents," Champagne said.
Champagne and Oertling also spoke about other options for families seeking to learn English, explaining that, "other options are available. Everyone should get an education. It may not have been as convenient as a high school two miles away."
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