Former Chester County school resource officer had ‘inappropriate’ relationship with teen, DA says

Stefanie Dunne sent more than 6,000 text messages to a teenager over the last year, authorities say. She called him “hunny” and professed her love for him. The boy, then 17, reciprocated as they set up secret rendezvous at parks around Chester County.

In May, one of those meetings was stumbled upon by a police officer, who found the two in a state of undress in the back of Dunne’s vehicle, according to an affidavit filed in her arrest Tuesday.

Dunne, 44, met the teenager while working as a school resource officer at Downingtown West High School. Their alleged relationship cost Dunne her job as a police officer in the borough, and resulted in her being charged with corruption of a minor, given its ”inappropriate“ nature, according to prosecutors.

“This was a situation where this defendant had a responsibility to take care of students, to protect students,” Chester County First District Attorney Michael Noone said Tuesday. “And instead, she betrayed her oath, she betrayed her badge, and she took advantage of this young man."

Dunne was arraigned Tuesday at District Court in Downingtown, with Judge Jeffrey Valocchi freeing her on $50,000 unsecured bail. No attorney was listed for Dunne, and she declined to comment after the proceedings.

Noone said that Dunne and the teen, now 18, met when he was a freshman at the school. They began their relationship in 2018, after the teen had left Downingtown West and enrolled in a workforce training program in Exton.

The messages gradually became more sexually charged, including graphic innuendos, the affidavit said.

According to the affidavit, Dunne told county detectives that the boy was a “tortured soul, very depressed,” and that she had helped coach him through a “downward spiral.” She likened herself to a counselor for the teen, who had been enrolled in a program at the high school for students with mental health, emotional, or disciplinary issues.

It was unclear when their physical relationship began, but Noone said there was no evidence that it had started while the teen was enrolled at Downingtown West. Additionally, he was above the legal age of consent in Pennsylvania when the physical contact occurred, so Dunne was not charged with any sexually based offenses.

Dunne was removed from her position with the school district immediately after the investigation began in May, and she later resigned from the police department.

In a statement Tuesday, Downingtown Police Chief Howard Holland said the department was “shocked and disappointed” by Dunne’s alleged actions.

“This type of conduct is deplorable to anyone, but much greater to those who wear the Downingtown police badge with honor,” Holland said.

Downingtown Area School District officials said Tuesday that the district “strongly condemns” Dunne’s alleged actions.

“Any time there is a threat to a young person, it is deeply upsetting,” they said in a statement. “As a district, we continually strive to ensure the safety and protection of our school community.”