Former Westwood and Morris teacher, facing sex abuse claims by students, released from jail
A former Westwood and Morris Hills music teacher accused of engaging in sexual conduct with students was released this week with strict conditions after a court appearance in Hackensack.
Kurt Zimmermann, 55, was originally arrested in February, accused of engaging in sexual conduct with a student when working as the band director in the Westwood Regional School District.
He was arrested a second time in March, accused by another student of sexual conduct when he was a teacher in the Morris Hills Regional School District in Rockaway.
Zimmermann was charged on March 13 with three counts of sexual assault. In February, he was charged with three counts of third-degree aggravated criminal sexual contact and second-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
During his second detention hearing on Wednesday, Assistant Prosecutor Sara Wilson argued that Zimmermann should not be released from jail, but state Superior Court Judge James Sattely ruled that the prosecution had not met its burden.
Sattely determined that Zimmermann would be released but under specific conditions.
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Zimmermann will be confined to home detention without GPS monitoring. He cannot have any contact with the alleged victims or witnesses, must appear at all court proceedings, is not allowed to travel outside of the United States without the court's permission and cannot leave his listed address, which is his mother's house, except for court hearings, medical appointments and meetings with his pretrial services officer.
During the hearing, Wilson said the second accuser outlined to police on March 12 a "prolonged relationship" with Zimmermann when she was a junior in high school in 2003, which lasted into college. She told police she had met him previously in sixth grade. According to Wilson, the victim said things between her and Zimmermann turned physical, and she outlined a "prolonged grooming process" that went from hugging and kissing to sex.
She told police her mother was aware of the relationship between her and Zimmermann and that the band director became "part of their family." Wilson said Zimmermann would spend the night at the accuser's home while she was still in high school, with the two sharing a bed, and they would travel together with and without family.
Wilson said this was all while the alleged victim was under the supervisory care of Zimmermann. The prosecutor said the second accuser spoke of multiple instances when she thought she was being followed and that Zimmermann would tell her to hide under a window in his apartment so no one would see her there.
She said the only reason she broke up with Zimmermann was because she caught him cheating on her with another student at the school.
Zimmermann's attorney, Michael DeMarco, said there have never been threats against the accuser, and he brought up whether Bergen County was the right venue, as some charges stem from Morris County. Sattely said it was something that could be argued another day.
Zimmermann is expected to be back in court on April 18. Zimmermann's wife has a temporary restraining order against him, and a hearing on that is expected on March 27.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Westwood NJ ex-teacher appears in court on sex abuse charges
