A day before a trial was scheduled to begin, a former Jefferson County Public Schools teacher pleaded guilty to dozens of counts of child sexual abuse.
Christopher Morris, 52, waived his right to trial by entering an Alford plea, which is a plea of guilty containing a protestation of innocence, on 37 counts of child sex abuse.
Morris was arrested in June 2022, after police say he sexually abused two teens. At the time, Morris was employed with Jefferson County Public Schools and was a coach for a traveling Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball team.
Morris was later indicted on 38 counts of criminal behavior, including sexual abuse of a minor and sodomy. Police said the crimes happened between August 2012 and May 2022 with one victim who was under 16 years old, and another victim under 18 years old.
On Monday, Morris pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful transaction of a minor, which is a class B felony, 13 counts of sex abuse and 22 counts of sodomy.
The plea agreement means a 20-year sentence for Morris. According to the Office of Commonwealth’s Attorney, Morris is expected to receive two 10-year consecutive sentences for a total of 20 years in prison. He must serve 85% of the sentence before he is eligible for parole. Morris will also have to register as a sex offender and complete a sex offender treatment program.
Morris will be sentenced by Judge Eric Haner on December 4.
Source: WDRB
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