Taped phone

conversations between a student at Starr's Mill High School and his English

teacher have led to the teacher's arrest on felony sexual assault charges

for having an off-campus affair with the student.

Laura Lynne

Voyles, 38, an English teacher at Starr's Mill, resigned after she was

confronted with evidence of her affair with an 18-year-old student by

Principal Sam Sweat, said schools spokesman Melinda Berry-Dreisbach. Law

enforcement authorities also were alerted by school officials as soon

as the information was reported to the school, Berry-Dreisbach said.

Voyles, who

taught advanced placement and gifted English courses, had been with the

school system for 12 years. Her resignation was routinely accepted Tuesday

morning along with five other personnel changes in a called meeting of

the Board of Education.

Detectives

with the Fayette County Sheriff's Department said there is evidence that

the affair between Voyles and the student lasted for approximately one

year.

Voyles was

charged with having sex with a person in custody. According to Georgia

law, any custodian who has sex with an enrolled student would qualify

for these charges, even if the victim consented to the sexual activity.

According to

the warrants for Voyles's arrest, at least one of the incidents took place

at her home. Investigators do not have any evidence that any impropriety

took place on school grounds, according to officials.

If convicted,

Voyles faces between one and three years in prison. School officials have

alerted the state's Professional Standards and Practices Commission so

that body can determine whether she will be allowed to keep her license

to teach in Georgia.

The student

is still enrolled at Starr's Mill and is a senior this year, Berry-Dreisbach

said. He took a class from Voyles last year and was enrolled in one of

her classes this year, Berry-Dreisbach added.

Law enforcement

officials would not release the student's name due to a Georgia statute

protecting the identity of victims of sex crimes. It was confirmed, however,

that the student was 17 at the time the alleged incidents began, although

he is now 18.