Ramsey Bearse faces up to two years in prison when she is sentenced in January.
A former Miss Kentucky pageant queen broke down in tears as she admitted to exchanging sexual photos with a teenager.
Ramsey Bearse, 29, pleaded guilty this week in a West Virginia courtroom to sending topless photos to a 15-year-old boy via Snapchat between August and October 2018. Bearse was a teacher at the school the boy attended.
"Since I am the adult, and he was just a teenager, it is my fault, and I accept full blame for the situation," she said in court. "So that's how I’m guilty of this crime. I messed up big-time."
In 2014, Bearse was crowned Miss Kentucky. She wowed judges with her fiddle-playing and tugged at hearts when she shared her personal battle with multiple sclerosis.
Bearse claimed she meant to send a risqué photo to her husband but accidentally sent it to the teen. Her husband, the son of a coal tycoon, had been working a lot and Bearse felt alone after moving to a new city, she said. He stood by her when she was arrested.
"My husband was working all the time and was too distracted and overwhelmed with work to pay attention to me,” she said. “I accidentally sent this young man a risqué photo that was meant for my husband."
However, when pressed about why she continued sending photos, Bearse claimed the student asked for more and she was "afraid to not appease him."
Bearse, who is currently out on bond, was suspended from her teaching position and is no longer employed by the school district.
She faces up to two years in prison when sentenced in January and the possibility of being on probation for 50 years following her release from prison. She may also be ordered to register as a sex offender, a title which she could have for the rest of her life.
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