A former Hurricane High School teacher and baseball coach has been sentenced to 30 days in jail for asking a female student to send him naked photos of herself, which he kept on his phone.
Aaron Karl Esplin, 41, of La Verkin, pleaded guilty in October to second-degree felony sexual exploitation of minor. A sexual battery charge was dismissed as part of a plea deal with prosecutors, who also agreed to recommend jail time rather than prison at his sentencing.
As part of a three-year probation, Judge Jeffrey Wilcox last month ordered Esplin to obtain a psychosexual evaluation and complete any recommended treatment, according to court records.
Last April, school official alerted police that a student had reported that Esplin and a 17-year-old student were having an inappropriate relationship, according to court documents.
In an interview with police, Esplin admitted asking the girl to send him naked pictures of herself, which he saved to his phone, court documents say.
Esplin also admitted touching the girl’s buttocks over her clothing on multiple occasions, and that more than once he had touched her back and stomach under her clothing.
Esplin, who is no longer employed by the district, started as a special education teacher at Hurricane High School 13 years ago, and also taught driver education and coached the junior varsity baseball team, school officials have said.
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