Former St. Charles teacher faces sexual assault charges

A former music teacher at a St. Charles middle school is accused of having unlawful sexual contact with a child under the age of 13, authorities said.

Benjamin Scholz, 25, faces two counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child.

Assistant Kane County State’s Attorney Morgan Wilkinson said in court Monday that the accusation stems from an incident that occurred sometime between July 1, 2023, and early May. The child was sleeping between Scholz and his former girlfriend at the time, Wilkinson said.

Scholz reported the incident to a therapist, who then contacted the Department of Child and Family Services, according to Wilkinson. DCFS relayed the report to law enforcement, she added.

The case was investigated by the Kane County Child Advocacy Center.

Wilkinson asked that Scholz remain in custody while awaiting trial, but Judge Salvatore LoPiccolo denied the request.

Scholz’s attorney Stacy McCullough told the court her client has moved out of St. Charles to his parents’ home in downstate Quincy. He turned himself in voluntarily and offered to give up his teaching license as well as not have unsupervised contact with children under the age of 18, she added.

LoPiccolo imposed those restrictions as a condition of his release.

Scholz was a teacher at Thompson Middle School, according to a personnel report on the school district’s website. He was hired in August 2023 and quit at the end of May.

His next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 8.