This article contains topics of the sexual assault of minors; please take care while reading.
Hulu is giving the true crime community something to talk about with the upcoming debut of a heartwrenching yet important story of a brave teenage victim who bravely opened up about experiencing sexual abuse at the hands of her teacher, Spencer Herron.
Betrayal: The Perfect Husband is slated to begin streaming on July 11, and many true crime connoisseurs might have already heard the tale of Herron, Jennifer Faison, and the victims who were unjustly and unfairly sexually assaulted at his hands.
Faison, Herron’s wife at the time, would go on to host a podcast that held interviews with more than one of Herron’s victims. While Betrayal, the podcast’s first season, which focused on their story, brought awareness to the situation, some listeners felt it was exploitative in nature. So just who is Spencer Herron, and what became of him after his arrest? Let’s take a look.
Who is Spencer Herron?
Spencer Herron is a 54-year-old former teacher arrested in 2018 on sexual assault charges from a student he took advantage of in the 2016-2017 school year. Herron used the false pretense of a nonexistent school club, allowing him to have unrestricted access and leading to the occurrence of the assault.
Herron was once Cobb County teacher of the year for his work as a video production teacher at Kell High School, with some sources saying he was actually named teacher of the year twice.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution shared the following statement from one of Herron’s victims, who said it was important to get justice so that other girls “felt safe going to school.”
“I hope this shows other victims and their families that they can stand up for themselves, too. I want girls to know that it is wrong for a trusted adult to abuse that trust to manipulate them into doing things they are not comfortable with. Victims should also not feel guilty or ashamed of themselves.”
The same student filed a lawsuit in 2019 alleging that officials at Kell High School didn’t do their due diligence regarding vetting clubs and field trips that students were invited on. Part of the lawsuit reads as follows:
“Defendants permitted Kell High School teacher Spencer Herron to use the so-called Drone Club as a means to repeatedly sexually assault [the student] at various locations inside Kell High School during or after meetings.”
The defendants mentioned Ed Wagner and Andy Bristow, who both served as principals, and Susan Stoddard, who was a vice principal. The Kell High School website no longer lists any of the people mentioned above as school employees.
Upon his conviction, Herron was sent to Wilcox State Prison in Abbeville, Georgia, where he would serve five years behind bars and be under probation for fifteen; he must also register as a sex offender, as Yahoo! reports.
We do not usually prefer to speak in such detail about the abuser and instead focus on the lives and circumstances of the victims, but at the time of the abuse, they were underage. As those who listened to the true-crime podcast are aware, some of Herron’s victims refused to even talk to Faison, but others did open up to her, one of whom said that it was a step forward in the healing/grieving process.
It was also a way for Herron’s victim to “speak for herself” and to “defend herself” in the public eye. As listeners of the podcast are also aware, Herron attempted to downplay his responsibility for the assault, alleging that he wasn’t the only “aggressor” in the situation.
The bottom line is that Herron was an adult, preying on a teenager (under 18), and was also in a position of power; that puts him with the full blame and responsibility no matter what. The victim isn’t guilty of anything — none of them are.
East Cobb News shared court documents that spell out some of the guidelines for his release into probation, including no contact with victims, no residence with anyone under 18, and no contact with anyone under 18, including children of his own.
Where is Herron now?
Herron was released from prison on June 1, 2023, but not much is known about his location after. With the terms of his release, Herron must report his living arrangements to officials and request permission before any possible relocation. With a Hulu documentary soon to be released, Betrayal: The Perfect Husband, it seems plausible that Herron would keep as low a profile as possible.
Betrayal: The Perfect Husband will begin streaming on July 11, and if you want to find out more before tuning in, you can listen to the Betrayal podcast’s first season, which highlights the story in nine episodes and six bonus clips.