November 4, 2010A substitute
teacher admitted to police that she performed oral sex on a 17-year-old Oakridge High School student earlier this year,
but she isn’t being prosecuted because authorities have been unable to corroborate her confession with any other evidence, Lane County District Attorney Alex Gardner said.
The 40-year-old woman told Oakridge Deputy Police Chief Dale Scobert during a Sept. 30 interview that the illegal act occurred last spring at the male student’s home, a police report released this week shows.
The woman, who is married, told Scobert that she agreed to engage in sexual contact with the teen after they exchanged several suggestive and sexual text messages, the report states.
When asked why she did it,
the woman told Scobert that the student “had been very persistent during numerous texts asking for it, and if she gave in she hoped he would stop asking and it all would be over,” the report states.
Scobert interviewed the student three days later.
The teen denied ever having any physical contact with the teacher, although he did acknowledge exchanging text messages with the woman that were “flirty” but “nothing serious,” the report states.
He also admitted to Scobert that he fueled rumors of his alleged relationship with the teacher by telling his friends that they had engaged in sexual acts, the report states.
Absent some other witness statement or physical evidence that corroborates the teacher’s admission, prosecutors say they cannot charge the woman with a crime.
“Regardless of what we think of the case, as a matter of law, we can’t proceed,” Gardner said. “Everybody finds that frustrating, but the law specifically requires there be more than a confession.”
Oregon law allows a confession alone to serve as sufficient proof only under very rare circumstances. Otherwise, prosecutors are required to have additional, corroborating evidence before charging someone with a crime.
Gardner said many states have similar laws. One reason why evidence supporting a confession is required to gain a conviction in court is that people sometimes confess to crimes they did not do, Gardner said.
Lane County prosecutors would be willing to re-evaluate the Oakridge case if police develop additional evidence, Gardner said.
Oakridge schools Superintendent Dr. Don Kordosky said the teacher, who as a substitute has been an “at-will” employee who does not have an employment contract with the district, will no longer work in Oakridge schools.
“If it’s going to cause a disruption, we don’t want (a substitute teacher) back,” Kordosky said.
He added that while discussion at the high school regarding the student’s alleged fling with the teacher “has caused very little disruption,”
many adults in the community have expressed concern about the situation.The teacher has worked as a substitute at several Oakridge schools for at least five years, Kordosky said.
The Register-Guard will not identify the woman unless she is charged with a crime. She could not be reached Wednesday by telephone.
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