KENDALLVILLE, Indiana — An East Noble High School agricultural science teacher faces multiple felony charges of child seduction following allegations of inappropriate behavior involving two students, according to court records.
Jesse Paul Kimmel, 45, faces one Level 5 felony count and one Level 6 felony count of child seduction by a child care worker. The Noble County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that law enforcement officers took Kimmel into custody on Friday.
The investigation began on April 16 when the Kendallville Police Department received a report that Kimmel had inappropriately touched a 14-year-old female student, according to a probable cause affidavit. The student informed investigators that the teacher frequently stood unusually close to her, initiated conversations that exceeded professional boundaries, and made her feel highly uncomfortable. Court documents state the student reported that Kimmel touched her inappropriately during an incident in March.
Law enforcement officials received a second report involving another teenage female student 10 days later. The second student told police that Kimmel engaged in inappropriate physical contact that made her feel uncomfortable and made multiple remarks regarding her body.
Investigators interviewed Kimmel on April 27, and a warrant was subsequently issued for his arrest in May. Following his arrest, Kimmel was removed from the East Noble School Corporation website, where he was previously listed as an agricultural science teacher.
East Noble School Corporation Superintendent Steven Vore distributed a letter to parents on Friday, May 22, announcing that a staff member had been placed on administrative leave. Vore stated that school administrators took immediate action to relieve the employee of all responsibilities and block all contact with students. The school district confirmed on Tuesday that Kimmel remains on administrative leave while official termination proceedings move forward.
In the prepared statement, school district officials confirmed they are fully cooperating with law enforcement. The district emphasized that the employee is no longer in the classroom, has no access to students, and that employment termination proceedings have been initiated without delay under Indiana law. School officials stated they will withhold further details to protect student privacy and preserve the integrity of the active criminal investigation.
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