Mary Kay Letourneau, the former Washington State sixth-grade teacher convicted in 1997 of raping her 12-year-old student Vili Fualaau and who later married him, died on July 6, 2020, at age 58 after a battle with stage 4 cancer.1People. Mary Kay Letourneau Died of Cancer She died in Seattle. Fualaau, by then her ex-husband, was with her when she died.2KSDK. Mary Kay Letourneau Dies at 58
Cause of Death and Final Months
Letourneau was diagnosed with metastatic stage 4 cancer.3Fox 13 Seattle. Mary Kay Letourneau Dead at 58 After Cancer Battle The file does not identify the primary site of the cancer or when the diagnosis was made.
Despite their 2019 divorce, Fualaau had been by her side “almost nonstop” during her final months, according to David Gehrke, her longtime attorney.3Fox 13 Seattle. Mary Kay Letourneau Dead at 58 After Cancer Battle Gehrke confirmed Fualaau was present at the moment of her death.2KSDK. Mary Kay Letourneau Dies at 58
Marital Status When She Died
Letourneau and Fualaau married on May 20, 2005, at a Washington winery, months after she completed her prison term and a judge lifted the no-contact order that had barred them from seeing each other.4People. Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau’s Relationship Through the Years In May 2017, Fualaau filed for legal separation in King County Superior Court, noting the couple had no prenuptial agreement, owned no real property, and that their two daughters were no longer dependents. The two were still living in the same home at the time of the filing.5CNN. Husband Files for Separation From Former Teacher The divorce was finalized in 2019.6Today. Vili Fualaau Was by Mary Kay Letourneau’s Side
Her Estate
Letourneau left her estate to Fualaau and their two daughters, Audrey and Georgia. A source close to the family told People it consisted primarily of photographs and personal mementos. “They didn’t have a ton of money,” the source said.7People. Mary Kay Letourneau Left Her Estate to Ex-Husband Vili Fualaau and Their Two Daughters
Why Her Death Was National News
Letourneau was arrested on March 4, 1997, and charged with second-degree child rape after beginning a sexual relationship with Fualaau, then 12, while teaching him sixth grade in the Highline School District near Seattle. She gave birth to their daughter Audrey on May 23, 1997, before her case was resolved.4People. Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau’s Relationship Through the Years
She pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree child rape in August 1997.8ABC News. Mary Kay Letourneau Sex With 6th Grader On November 14, 1997, King County Superior Court Judge Linda Lau sentenced her to 89 months in prison but suspended most of the term. Under the agreement, Letourneau would serve about six months in jail, register as a sex offender, undergo sex-offender treatment, take medication for a bipolar diagnosis, and comply with a no-contact order.9Time. May December Netflix True Story
On February 3, 1998, weeks after her release, police found her with Fualaau in a parked car containing a passport, baby clothes, and a large amount of cash.10History. Infamous School Teacher Goes Back to Prison Three days later, Judge Lau reinstated the full 89-month sentence, telling her: “Within weeks from your release from jail, you purposely violated the terms of your agreement.”11Washington Post. Parole Revoked, Ex-Teacher Sent to Prison in Teen Sex Case Their second daughter, Georgia, was born at the Washington Corrections Center for Women on October 16, 1998, when Fualaau was 15.8ABC News. Mary Kay Letourneau Sex With 6th Grader
She was released in August 2004 after roughly seven and a half years and remained a registered Level 2 sex offender in Washington State for the rest of her life, with her address verified by a King County deputy every 90 days.126ABC. Mary Kay Letourneau, Teacher Jailed for Raping Student, Dies13NBC News. Mary Kay Letourneau Sex Offender Registration Fualaau, by then 21, petitioned to lift the no-contact order. The King County Prosecutor’s Office did not object, and a judge granted the request on August 6, 2004.14NBC News. No-Contact Order Lifted
Reactions to Her Death
Gehrke, who represented Letourneau from the beginning of the case, said she “always struggled to accept what she’d done was against the law” and asked the public to remember “how strong she was and how brilliant she was and how kind she was. And not look at her like a child rapist.”3Fox 13 Seattle. Mary Kay Letourneau Dead at 58 After Cancer Battle
Attorney Anne Bremner, who befriended Letourneau in 2002, offered a different framing: “She accepted that it was a crime and that she had to serve her time, but when she got out she didn’t dwell. She moved forward in a very positive way and raised those girls.”15WJAR. Mary Kay Letourneau, Teacher Who Married Former Student, Dies
Fualaau and the Daughters Since
Fualaau has kept a low profile since Letourneau’s death and lives in the Seattle area. In 2022, he had a third daughter, Sophia, from a separate relationship.16People. Vili Fualaau Today His daughter Georgia and her longtime boyfriend had a son in January 2024, making Fualaau a grandfather at 40.17Fox 13 Seattle. Mary Kay Letourneau’s Former Student to Become Grandfather Audrey and her fiancé, Ethan Tela Porter, welcomed a son named Elias in May 2025.18E! Online. Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau’s Daughter Audrey Welcomes First Baby
On “The Dr. Oz Show” after Letourneau’s death, Fualaau was asked how he would respond if he ever felt attracted to a minor. He said he would seek help, adding that the idea was “just not in my brain.”17Fox 13 Seattle. Mary Kay Letourneau’s Former Student to Become Grandfather
Letourneau’s four older children, from her first marriage to Steve Letourneau, were raised by their father after her 1997 arrest. Steve has worked at Alaska Airlines for over 30 years. Their son Nicholas graduated from Georgetown University.19Yahoo Entertainment. Mary Kay Letourneau’s 1st Husband
Fualaau’s Statement on the May December Film
In 2023, the Netflix film May December, starring Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman, drew on the case for its premise while fictionalizing key details. In January 2024, Fualaau issued a rare public statement condemning the project: “I’m offended by the entire project and the lack of respect given to me — who lived through a real story and is still living it.” He said no one from the production had contacted him and called the film “a ripoff of my original story.”20Hollywood Reporter. Mary Kay Letourneau, Vili Fualaau, and May December No legal action against the filmmakers has been reported.