NEWS

Elmore teacher found guilty in sex trial

Marty Roney
Montgomery Advertiser

UPDATE: 3:25 p.m.

Jeffrey Stanton was found guilty of a school employee having sexual contact with a student under the age of 19. The crime is a misdemeanor. Circuit Judge Ben Fuller sentenced him to a year in the Elmore County Jail, the maximum penalty.

"If I could impose a stronger sentence I would do so," Fuller told Stanton.

Even though it is a misdemeanor, Stanton will have to register as a sex offender upon his release.

"We were hoping for a felony conviction but we will take this," said Mandy Johnson, the assistant district attorney who handled the case. "Mr. Stanton will longer be a teacher in Alabama and he will be a registered sex offender.

"A year in jail isn't a stiff sentence, but the sex offender tag will follow him the rest of his life."

Defense attorney Richard White took the verdict in stride.

"Jeff maintains his innocence," White said. "The jury has spoken and we respect that. The charge that Jeff was indicted on, a felony, the jury found him not guilty on. So is that a victory? It is somewhat."

ORIGINAL STORY:

WETUMPKA – An Elmore County jury deliberated about an hour and a half Thursday afternoon before breaking for the day in the sex trial of a former Elmore teacher.

Circuit Judge Ben Fuller allowed the panel to go home about 4:30 p.m. The panel will return to the courthouse at 9 a.m. Friday to renew deliberations. Jeffrey Stanton, 34, of Montgomery, faces a charge of a school employee engaging in a sex act with a student. He is a former teacher and coach at Stanhope Elmore High School in Millbrook. He is accused of having sex with a 17-year-old student in his classroom.

The state rested its case about 9:30 a.m. Thursday. The defense put on three witnesses, all current teachers at Stanhope Elmore. Stanton did not take the stnd.

One teacher's testimony blew a hole in the the prosecution's theory of the case. Jennifer Cooper has been at Stanhope Elmore for five years, where she teaches algebra and is the head softball coach. She told the jury the alleged victim stayed in her classroom that afternoon, and was never in Stanton's classroom. The incident allegedly occurred on May 16, 2013, the day of the spring football game.

The alleged victim was in her classroom "hanging out" after school, Cooper said. Cooper told the jury her classroom was diagonally across the hall from Stanton's classroom.

"On football nights I stayed in my classroom in the afternoon, because my son played on the team," she said. "Then I would just walk across the road to the stadium. From 5 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. (the victim) was in my classroom with me and my younger son.

"I never saw (the victim) leave my classroom and we all walked over to the stadium together about 5:45 p.m."

The victim testified Wednesday that she had spent that afternoon in Stanton's classroom and the the alleged incident occurred just before the start of the spring game.

During closing arguments, Josh Cochran, an assistant district attorney, asked the jury to send a message with a guilty verdict.

"We hold teachers to a higher standard," he said. "We expect teachers to protect their students. We don't expect teachers to violate their students."

In his close, defense attorney Richard White, addressed text messages between Stanton and the alleged victim that the state entered into evidence. The texts were of a sexual nature.

"I get it, the texts were inappropriate," he told the jury. "I get it, you probably don't want my client to teach your children or be around your children. But we aren't here because of text messages. We are here on a rape charge.

"The state didn't present enough evidence to convince you beyond a reasonable doubt, because it never happened."

Stanton was originally charged with rape in the first degree, according to Millbrook Police Department reports. That charge is a Class A felony, punishable by a period of 10 to 99 years to life in prison. Stanton was fired from his posts following his arrest.

The grand jury indicted him on the lessor charge, a Class B felony, with a punishment range of two to 20 years in prison. In the lessor charge, the state doesn't have to prove the use of force, said Mandy Johnson, assistant district attorney.

Fuller gave the jury a lessor included charge to consider, that of a school employee having sexual contact with a student under 19. That charge is a misdemeanor, with a maximum punishment of a year and a day in the county jail.