GET A GRIP

Prosser, Washington (SafeCITY) Linda Lusk, a 49-year-old high school Principal's wife and former Prosser Mayor, has been charged after she allegedly had sexual contact with a 14-year-old boy.

According to the Prosser Police Department, Lusk performed a sexual act on the boy in late April during his lunch break from school.

Investigators say Lusk took the boy to her daughter's bedroom where she proceeded to touch the boy's penis and ask him to touch her breasts.

The alleged relationship began with the two sending explicit text messages to each other including a text where Lusk reportedly sent the boy a partially nude photograph of herself.

Lusk and her husband, a Prosser High School principal where the victim attends school, asked to meet with the parents of the victim on June 2 to tell them about the relationship. During the conversation, Lusk told the boy's mother she had texted the victim and "that it had become inappropriate."

Authorities had already received information about an alleged inappropriate relationship, because rumors had apparently circulated around the school.

When the parents questioned their son, he told them the rumors were true and that he and Lusk had sexual contact.

The Benton County Sheriff's office took over the investigation on June 3 to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest from Lusk's past position as mayor.

Lusk was not arrested or jailed but faces a charge of third-degree child molestation.

Lusk served one term as Prosser's mayor, but was defeated during her re-election bid in 2007. A mother of four kids and two stepchildren, Lusk now owns a handbag boutique in Prosser called "Get a Grip."