Jul 18, 2007 8:37 am US/Pacific
Teacher On Trial For Allegedly Kissing Girl, 9
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (AP) ―
A former Nipomo school teacher on trial for allegedly French kissing a nine-year-old student admitted kissing the girl.
But 70-year-old David Grey told a San Luis Obispo County courtroom yesterday that the embrace wasn't for sexual gratification.
Grey has pleaded not guilty to a felony lewd or lascivious act on a minor child and misdemeanor annoying or molesting a child. If convicted, he faces up to nine years in prison.
Grey allegedly kissed the girl at Dana Elementary School 13 months ago.
He testified that he kissed the girl, then clarified that the smooch was on or around her lips or mouth.
The girl says Grey kissed her twice with an open mouth.
Grey testified "It could have been on the cheek or the lip. I never put my tongue in her mouth."
Grey says the girl sat on his lap while watching a science movie in a classroom and she wouldn't move back to her desk when he asked her to. When he dismissed the class early for recess, the girl stayed behind.
The defendant testified that he picked her up, put her on a table and kissed her. But he insists the kiss wasn't sexual in nature.
Grey said the girl frequently "demanded a lot of attention" and often hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.
The defendant says the girl encouraged other students to hug him, and sometimes he'd have six children snuggling up to him. Grey testified that children called the embraces "energy hugs."
(© 2007 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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