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Former teacher pleads guilty
Published January 18, 2008
ANGLETON — Former Manvel Junior High School social studies teacher Brian Edward Cody received a 12-year prison sentence after pleading guilty Thursday to aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Cody, 31, of Port Lavaca also pleaded guilty to improper educator/student contact. The child involved was a seventh-grade boy at the school, and the plea deal saved the student from having to testify at trial, Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne said.
“We consulted with the victims and they were comfortable with the resolution,” Yenne said after Thursday’s proceedings in 23rd District Court. “You try to balance and be fair, but this is not a minor thing. You have to be able to trust people in authority with your children.”
Cody’s defense attorney, David Cunningham, of Houston did not return calls to his office or cell phone Thursday afternoon.
The boy’s parents told Alvin ISD officials Cody was having an improper relationship with their son, district spokeswoman Shirley Brothers has said. Court documents state the two charges stem from a Nov. 16, 2006, incident involving a sex act with a male student younger than 14.
Alvin ISD terminated Cody’s employment when charges were filed, Brothers said.
Cody waived his right to appeal as part of the plea agreement.
“At least the child saw he accepted responsibility by pleading guilty,” she said.
Aggravated sexual assault of a child carries a possible prison sentence of five years to life and a $10,000 fine, while improper educator/student relationship is punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Trust between parents, teachers and students should never be violated, Yenne said.
“The betrayal from a parent’s perspective is tremendous,” she said. “You teach your children to respect authority and to have someone in authority make this serious of a breech is traumatic.”
Cody was remanded to court custody to begin serving his sentence in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
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