Police: Ogden teacher's relationships 'inappropriate,' but not illegal

Ogden police say an Ogden High School teacher has had 'inappropriate relationships' with at least six female students over the years, but none of them rise to criminal conduct.

Lt. Scott Conley said Thursday that while the teacher's behavior is questionable under the school district's policy for professional conduct, his relationship with students is not criminal.

He said investigators found the teacher had "inappropriate relationships" with at least six students dating back to 2000. He said the teacher used his influence to develop relationships with girls shortly before they turned 18.

Police investigated allegations the teacher had been dating his current girlfriend since she was a minor and was living with her after a reporter for the Standard Examiner in Ogden relayed the allegation earlier this month but did not reveal the source. The source reportedly claimed the 47-year-old teacher and student were dating when the student was 16 or 17 years old, Conley said.

Conley declined to discuss how the teacher was able to cultivate relationships with the girls, but said he used similar pick-up lines and took them to some of the same locations. He said he couldn't specify exactly what the teacher said to the girls or where he took them.

The cases "mirrored each other to where there were the same comments being made" to each girl the teacher pursued, Conley said. The teacher, however, was savvy to make sure his behavior didn't cross any lines until the girls were 18 and of legal age, he said.

Ogden School District spokeswoman Donna Corby said the district received similar information in an inquiry from the reporter.

The teacher, who has taught at the school for 14 years, has been put on paid administrative leave pending the investigation, Corby said. Neither Corby nor Conley would not disclose the subject the teacher instructs, and the man's name has not been released.

He said he was surprised to uncover how many girls with which the teacher had forged inappropriate relationships without anyone passing on allegations to the police department before this year. People interviewed during the investigation agreed to do so because they were promised anonymity, he said.

Some reported being ridiculed by classmates during high school because of their relationship with the teacher, Conley said.

"They didn't have a normal school experience because of the relationship. They'd be taunted and teased by others," Conley said.

"It's an unfortunate case that involves an educator and students. It has affected more than just the student and teacher themselves. It also goes into the families. It has carried on and caused a lot of pain."

From the article: Lt. Scott Conley said Thursday that while the teacher's behavior is questionable under the school district's policy for professional conduct, his relationship with students is not criminal...The source reportedly claimed the 47-year-old teacher and student were dating when the student was 16 or 17 years old, Conley said. Conley declined to discuss how the teacher was able to cultivate relationships with the girls, but said he used similar pick-up lines and took them to some of the same locations.

So Utah authorities (& this Utah high school) only find educators dating 16-17 yo girls and using "similar pick-up lines" and taking "them to some of the same locations" as "questionable" -- like it only raises ? marks in their minds?

Oh, it gets "better": From the article: The teacher, however, was savvy to make sure his behavior didn't cross any lines until the girls were 18 and of legal age, he said.

Say what? Has somebody neglected to tell Utah law enforcement officials or Utah journalists that it doesn't matter if a high school senior turns 18 in regard to the law? The fact is that the educator is still in a position of authority over that student and therefore laws are specifically crafted to include this reality at least at the high school level.

Why does this have "Let's protect this educator" all over this article other than (a) we don't see his name given; (b) they create new "boundaries" (age 18 vs. educator-student relationship); (c) they make it sound like educators dating high school students is only a "professional" breech of conduct.

Finally, again from the article: Some [of these female students] reported being ridiculed by classmates during high school because of their relationship with the teacher, Conley said. "They didn't have a normal school experience because of the relationship. They'd be taunted and teased by others," Conley said.

OK, if the "stories" were this "out" of the campus closet, where were the campus administrators in following up on these rumors? Is that just longstanding "Utah normal" re: teen-adult relationships?

What is it about Utah?

Utah circa 2005: The Salt Lake Trib had a major article Oct. 25: In 2005, Utah ranked 16th in the nation for teacher sex offenses, according to an Associated Press survey of disciplinary records from 2001 to 2005 in 50 states and the District of Columbia. At that time, 52.7 percent of Utah teachers who lost their licenses surrendered them for sexual misconduct -- twice the national rate, the AP found. Source: SexualMisconductPersistentInUtahSchools

Utah, 2009 cases: From the Salt Lake Trib Oct. 25 sidebar to the article linked @ above link -- and this isn't even "comprehensive" for 2009 for these types of cases:

Oct. 15 » Kenneth William Taylor, 45, a wood shop teacher at Roy Junior High School, is charged with developing a relationship with a 14- or 15-year-old student, which turned sexual when she was 16.

Oct. 13 » John Robert Cody, 39, a social studies teacher at Pineview High School in St. George, is alleged to have fondled two girls and a woman at his apartment complex pool in 2008.

Sept. 29 » Keith Gillins, 61, a long-time teacher, boys basketball coach, former Fillmore mayor and an LDS bishop, is sentenced to up to life in prison for the alleged sexual abuse of a 16-year-old student in the back of his classroom.

Sept. 8 » Douglas Bullock, 42, a teacher at Bloomington Hills Elementary in St. George, is charged with 12 counts of third-degree felony unlawful sex with a minor for an alleged relationship with a 17-year-old boy.

Sept. 7 » Matthew Scott Adams, 31, a shop teacher at Cedar Middle School in Cedar City, is sentenced to one year in the Iron County Jail for allegedly videotaping young women through their windows. Some of the victims were students where he taught.

Aug. 25 » Churchill Junior High substitute teacher Christopher Benjamin Page, 20, of Salt Lake City, pleads guilty to one count of forcible sexual abuse after Sandy police find him and a 13-year-old female student both shirtless in a parked car.

Aug. 17 » Melissa Ann Andreini, 28, a former special education teacher at Helper Junior High School, is charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor stemming from an alleged relationship with a 15-year-old student. She allegedly paid the victim between $1,400 and $1,500 after the encounters.

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