A school administrator from Wisconsin is charged with the repeated rape of a 15-year-old girl, with police saying text messages recovered from the phones reveal the educator referring to herself as the girl’s girlfriend.
Kaitlyn Hintz, 32, from Green Bay, the associate principal at Bonduel Middle/High School, is charged with three counts of felony offenses including: repeated sexual assault of the same child, sexual assault of a child second degree, and child enticement. She made her first court appearance Wednesday virtually from the Shawano County Jail, with the cash bond set at $500,000.
The first two counts are Class C felonies, while the third count is a Class D felony. Each charge carries up to 40 years in prison and a maximum fine of $100,000. Therefore, the total imprisonment is over 100 years on the three counts.
Hintz faces severe consequences if found guilty. According to NBC 26, prosecutors requested a high cash bond based on her position of authority over the girl. Under the court ruling, she must surrender her passport and remain in Wisconsin. Additionally, she should not contact the girl or anyone under 18, except for accidental contact outside school. She should stay at least 300 feet away from both the girl’s residence and Bonduel School.
WSAU radio reports Thursday that Hintz has posted bond in Shawano County. Her preliminary hearing will be held in Shawano County Circuit Court on Tuesday.
Assistant District Attorney Laura Nelson has said additional charges may be filed in Shawano County and in neighboring Brown County, where Green Bay is located. The detectives have advised the Brown County prosecutors to charge her with the same three counts and a charge of sexual misconduct by a school staff member, as per NEW Media of Shawano.
On Oct. 16, the investigation began in Shawano County, where the sheriff’s office received an anonymous call via Speak Up, Speak Out, a confidential school safety reporting tool launched by Wisconsin’s Department of Justice. The service provides around-the-clock support by phone, text, and online tools.
The complaint indicates that the student informed detectives she repeatedly engaged in sexual conduct with Hintz from October 2024 to August 2025 while she was 15 and 16 years old, respectively. During her sophomore year, she had this sexual relationship with Hintz in and out of Bonduel and Pulaski and at Hintz’s former house in Green Bay.
She said she consented to the relationship and enjoyed the love she received, according to the complaint. According to Wisconsin state law, a person at such an age does not have the legal capacity to consent to sexual conduct with someone else.
Through their text message search, investigators recovered text messages in which they called each other “girlfriend” and expressed their love for one another. One text message from this year stated: “Your girlfriend thinks you’re the best, and good night. I love you.”
Initially, Hintz told the detectives that it was neither a romance nor a sexual encounter. She also told them she gave the student her private phone number and went off campus to support her mentally and ensure her safety, the complaint says. She admitted hugging the student and violating school rules.
When the detectives confronted her Monday with the text messages recovered, she would not confirm or deny having a sexual relationship. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to say right now,” she stated as noted in the complaint. After being charged, she was arrested.
According to Joe Dawidziak, superintendent of Bonduel School District, Hintz has been placed on administrative leave after law enforcement in the district discovered the allegations. He wrote in a letter that none of the allegations occurred within the school premises or on the district’s digital platform. He urged everyone to report any school-related concerns to an administrator and through the tip line. A district official told WBAY that the district had no other comments.
Her attorney’s name and phone numbers were not yet known. It was uncertain whether she had an attorney.
Some residents of Bonduel, a Shawano County village northwest of Green Bay, offered advice. It is advisable not to judge the whole school and community based on an employee’s incident.
For anyone who has suffered sexual assault, there is a source of free and confidential help through the National Sexual Assault Hotline at rainn.org.
