A former northern Tasmanian teacher has been jailed for two and a half years for persistently sexually abusing a teenage student.
Daniel John Davis, 37, was sentenced by Justice Robert Pearce in the Supreme Court on Friday after pleading guilty to persistent sexual abuse of a young person.
The court heard Davis was aged 32 and 33 when he abused the girl between late 2021 and August 2022 while working at a district high school.
She was 15 for most of the offending and turned 16 in mid-2022.
Justice Pearce said Davis became close to the girl while she was in Grade 9 after she told him she was going through a difficult time.
Davis began emailing her, told her he loved her and used opportunities at school to touch and kiss her.
The charge covered eight identified sexual acts, including incidents in classrooms, offices and storerooms at the school.
Justice Pearce said that during one incident in Grade 10, Davis pushed the girl against a classroom door, pressed his body against her, touched her and kissed her.
The court heard Davis also began meeting the girl in his car after school in April and May 2022.
During one meeting, Justice Pearce said Davis had the girl straddle him after asking whether she had her period and suggested he should have brought a condom.
Justice Pearce said Davis told the girl not to tell anyone because his life would be ruined and his children would be affected.
“It is thus very clear that you knew what you were doing was wrong and what the consequences may be,” he said.
Davis was stood down from teaching on September 1, 2022, after a different former student made a complaint. He resigned later that month.
The court heard the girl then told her mother and a friend about some of what had happened before speaking to police in November 2022.
Justice Pearce described Davis’s conduct as a “shocking breach of the trust” placed in him by the girl, her parents, his employer and fellow teachers.
“The community is entitled to expect that children and young persons who are sent to school will not be the subject of sexual advances by teachers,” he said.
“There was a very significant discrepancy in age, maturity and power and you were emotionally manipulative.”
Davis’s lawyers asked for home detention, but Justice Pearce said that would not adequately address punishment, condemnation and deterrence.
Davis was sentenced to two years and six months in prison and will be eligible for parole after serving half of the sentence.
He will also be placed on the community protection offender register and face reporting requirements for five years after his release.
