Audio By Carbonatix
A former teacher/cheerleading coach at a Tucson high school pleaded guilty this morning to charges that she had a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old student at the school for which she formerly worked.
Christie Elliot, a now-former English teacher and cheerleading coach at Empire High School in Tucson, pleaded guilty to assault of sexual nature on a minor of 15 years or less.
Initially, Elliot faced charges of luring a minor for sexual exploitation and sexual conduct with a minor. She also faced one count of bribing a witness for trying to get the victim to change his story after the relationship was discovered.
Elliot admitted this morning that she kissed the boy, which is a far cry from initial allegations that she had the boy “touch her intimately.”
When news happens, Phoenix New Times is there —
Your support strengthens our coverage.
We’re aiming to raise $30,000 by December 31, so we can continue covering what matters most to you. If New Times matters to you, please take action and contribute today, so when news happens, our reporters can be there.
The victim’s parents, police say, found inappropriate messages on their son’s cell phone in April 2010 and called police.
After serving search warrants and interviewing those involved, police determined that the student had an inappropriate sexual relationship with Elliot, who happened to be his English teacher.
Because of the plea agreement, Elliot faces anything from probation to two years in prison when she’s sentenced on June 29.
