by SEAN KIMMONS
A former San Marcos High School teacher accused of having sex with an 18-year-old student on school grounds has pled guilty as part of a plea agreement for the offense, court records show.
William Shawn Harris, 34, a teacher and assistant coach at San Marcos High School at the time, faced six felony counts of an improper relationship with a student relating to his relationship with the girl, a senior at the high school.
Harris
In March, Harris was arrested for alleged encounters that took place between November 2009 and January 2010. He is expected to be sentenced on Jan. 12 by District Judge Charles Ramsay, who will be allowed to accept or deny any of the conditions of the plea agreement.
Under the agreement, Harris is to serve seven years probation with eligibility for deferred adjudication. He will also pay a fine of $2,500 and not have to register as a sex offender, Harris’ attorney Cliff McCormack said Monday.
Five of the six counts that Harris faced would be dismissed under the agreement as well, McCormack said. Improper relationship with a student is a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison, with a fine of up to $10,000.
According to an arrest affidavit on Harris, a friend of the girl reported the sexual encounters to San Marcos police officer Brad Follis.
The witness said that Harris had sex with the girl six times, the affidavit states, twice in Harris’ classroom, twice in the coaches’ offices, once at his home and once in a parked car in a neighborhood.
The girl confirmed the story later to police and made a cell phone call to Harris in the presence of two police officers. In the call, Harris told the student that he was an idiot for allowing the relationship to happen and that he “broke down under the pressure of you.”
Harris was an assistant girls’ volleyball and basketball coach and a teacher in a course credit recovery program computer lab, said Iris Campbell, San Marcos CISD spokesperson.
He was employed with the school district for five years, previously at Miller Junior High, and transferred to the high school last year.
In all truth, I can’t blame this guy. I’ve watched some of these teeny-boppers brag about how they can seduce a guy. The power of sexuality is very strong and if the truth were known, probably 15 to 20 percent of high school students and teachers would be in jail.