Content warning: This article describes child sexual abuse. Please take care while reading.
Former Hudson, Wisconsin, elementary school teacher Madison Bergmann, 25, broke down in tears in a St. Croix County courtroom on September 29, 2025. She pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an inappropriate relationship with a fifth-grade student. Her emotional appearance came as prosecutors revealed additional disturbing details from the investigation.
At her court appearance, Bergmann admitted guilt to one count of child enticement (sexual contact) and two counts of sexual misconduct by school staff. Under the plea agreement, several more serious charges — including first-degree child sexual assault and use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime — were dismissed but remain on the record as “read-ins,” meaning they can be referenced during sentencing.
Local reporters described her sobbing, struggling to answer questions from the judge, and wiping away tears as she acknowledged guilt.
The Bergmann case
According to newly released documents, Bergmann’s conduct came to light when the victim’s mother overheard a suspicious call between her son and the teacher. Police later recovered text messages and handwritten notes, some from Bergmann’s backpack, between the pair that referenced affection, physical encounters, and secret meetings during school hours.
Investigators reported that Bergmann and the boy communicated “nearly every day,” both electronically and through passed notes. Among the evidence were nearly 100 handwritten notes and drawings, many of which contained romantic or intimate references. One letter reportedly included Bergmann writing, “I love you more than anyone in the world but I have to be the adult here and stop.”
Bergmann, a fifth-grade teacher at River Crest Elementary School in Hudson, resigned after her May 2024 arrest, when administrators alerted Hudson police to possible misconduct. Earlier attempts by her defense team to dismiss charges on technical language grounds were rejected by the court.
Bergmann is scheduled to be sentenced on December 22, 2025. Though her plea reduced the number of charges, the dismissed counts will still be weighed by the court when determining punishment. In exchange for her guilty plea, prosecutors agreed to request a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison, but her final sentence will be determined by the judge at her sentencing hearing.
Authorities charged Bergmann’s colleague, Abigail Faust, another Wisconsin teacher at the same school this year, in a separate child sexual abuse case. Investigators say Bergmann and Faust knew about each other’s abuse.
If you know someone suffering from sexual violence, contact RAINN or the National Sexual Abuse Telephone Hotline at 1-800-656-4673
