Peter Aibor Jeschke, now 35, was arrested in December 2007 and faces up to 10 years in prison as a result of the verdict, Senior Deputy District Attorney Joyce Dudley said.
The jury found Jeschke guilty of sexual penetration by a foreign object, three counts of oral copulation and two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, as well as a misdemeanor charge for possession of marijuana.
He was found not guilty of administering an intoxicating substance to a minor in order to commit a felony and furnishing marijuana to a minor. The jury was divided 7-5 on charges of furnishing cocaine and ecstasy to a minor.
His sentencing is scheduled for June 24. Both Dudley and defense attorney Lara Yeretsian claimed victory following the verdict yesterday.
“The bottom line is a child came forward and a jury believed her,” Dudley said. “So it sends a message to other children that if they are being molested, they can come forward.”
Yeretsian, however, noted that the major drug-related counts had been dropped, along with several others during the course of the trial itself.
“We were looking at 20-plus years when we started and now we’re looking at eight years maximum,” she said. “I think the jury has spoken loud and clear, especially on the drug counts. I see this as a victory.”
Dudley noted that there was no evidence of cocaine or ecstasy found during a search following Jeschke’s arrest, and no way to test the victim for those drugs. While she doesn’t doubt the victim’s account of being given drugs by Jeschke, Dudley said she understood the jury’s need for forensic evidence.
Jeschke is also facing upcoming charges of witness intimidation, Dudley said, after he allegedly asked several teenagers he knew at the high school to call key witnesses and threaten them in an attempt to get them to change their testimony or not testify at all.
Dudley said there are at least three potential victims of witness intimidation and each charge would count as a strike against Jeschke if he were found guilty.
Although she is unsure if she will represent Jeschke during any future criminal proceedings, Yeretsian said she is hopeful that the District Attorney’s Office will drop any witness intimidation charges that may be filed.
“I would hope that they would just move on instead of dragging all these teens back to court,” she said.
Jeschke served as a volunteer for the boys tennis team in spring 2006 before being hired as a walk-on tennis coach for both girls and boys teams.
School officials said volunteer and walk-on coaches are fingerprinted and noted at the time of the arrest that a background check of Jeschke in 2006 had failed to turn up a criminal history.
The victim’s friends had apparently learned of the sexual relationship between the 16-year-old student and the 34-year-old tennis coach. They approached school officials, who handed off the investigation to police.