FARMINGTON — A former Woods Cross drama teacher accused of fondling a 14-year-old student pleaded guilty to one of the charges against him Monday.
James D. Stokes, 62, pleaded guilty to one count of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony. In exchange for his plea, prosecutors agreed to drop a second identical count.
He will be sentenced on April 4.
Stokes was the drama teacher at the Legacy Preparatory Academy charter school in Woods Cross when he was accused of molesting a 14-year-old student. Prosecutors say he twice touched the girl inappropriately in his car while in Centerville in January 2010.
The incidents happened when Stokes and the girl were preparing for a play. Stokes offered her a ride home after rehearsal and drove the girl to a remote area, where the assaults occurred, according to police. The girl told her parents what had happened in July, and Stokes was arrested the next month, just days before school was to start.
Stokes was about to begin his fourth year at the academy. Prior to that, he taught in the Ogden area at both a high school and a junior high school for six years.
— Emiley Morgan Twitter: DNewsCrimeTeam