California Teacher, 41, 'Groomed' Student before Moving in with Her

The mother of an 18-year-old student who moved in with a 41-year-old teacher claims he abused and groomed the girl before she reached the age of consent.

Tammie Powers, of Modesto, California, said of James Hooker: "She looked up to him. [He was in the] position of an educator [and you] don't abuse your student. Period.

"She's still in high school. She still lives at home. She has a curfew. That's not OK," she told ABC News.

Hooker, a former business teacher at Modesto High School, resigned after going public about his relationship with Jordan Powers. He left his wife and children to move in with the teenager.

The couple claimed that their relationship only became physical once Powers, who has dropped out of school, turned 18 in September.

"The stigma of the teacher-student relationship just makes it messy, makes it really hard for people to [understand] that we really do like each other," he told ABC News. "We really do want to have a future together."

Hooker is under investigation by Modesto police after Powers' mother reportedly found more than 8,000 text messages exchanged with the girl when she was still a minor.