Mary Kay Letourneau, Teacher Jailed for Raping Student, Dies of Cancer

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Mary Kay Letourneau, a teacher who married her former sixth-grade student after she was convicted of raping him in a legal case that drew global headlines, has died.

She was 58 years old.

Mary Kay Letourneau

According to two a pair of insiders close to Letourneau, she passed away Monday after quietly battling cancer for several months.

"It was a very sad ending," a source tells People Magazine, explaining that Letourneau's started to deteriorate significantly in recent months.

Letourneau was 34 years old when she began a sexual relationship with a sixth grader named Vili Fualaau.


Mary Kay Letourneau People Cover

Despite an understandable onslaught of controversy and an enormous amount of backlash over the years, the two actually got married in 2005 after Letourneau served a seven-and-a-half year sentence for her actions.

They separated in 2017.

Shortly after their affair was discovered, Letourneau was ordered to spend six months in jail and to stay away from Fualaau.

However, upon her release in 1998, authorities discovered that the pair had resumed their relationship.

As a reuslt, Letourneau's plea agreement was revoked and she went on to serve the aforementioned prison sentence.

Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau Photo

Fualaau and Letourneau wrote a book together titled “Un Seul Crime, L’Amour,” or “Only One Crime, Love.” 


Mary Kay's family and the family of her estranged husband released a statement on her passing late Tuesday, confirming Letourneau died after being diagnosed with metastatic cancer six months ago.


"Mary fought tirelessly against this terrible disease," it reads.

Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau

In an interview with Barbara Walters in 2015, Letourneau said she should not be labeled a sex offender.

"There is a story of us that has a life of its own, but it's not our story," Mary Kay Letourneau, who was a married mother of four before the tryst, told the journalist.

She emphasized that she and her then-husband were legitimately in love, while Fualaau said his experience with Mary Kay shouldn't serve as any sort of positive example.

"I don't support younger kids being married or having relationships with someone older. I don't support it," he said back then.

Mary Kay Letourneau

Concluded the statement released by Letourneau's son from her previous marriage:

"Mary, and all of us, found great strength in having our immediate and extended family members together to join her in this arduous struggle.

"We did our very best to care for Mary and one another as we kept her close and stayed close together



Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau Picture

As the ex-couple's split proceeded, Letourneau and Fualaau continued to live together, occasionally being spotted out in the Seattle area.

They both remained active in the lives of their two daughters, Georgia and Audrey.

However, despite numerous reconciliation attempts, the case moved to private arbitration in February of 2019.

The separation then became official late last year and the two began living apart.

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