Former Sweet Home teacher Michael Joseph Morrell pleaded guilty to two counts of third-degree sexual abuse in a deal with prosecutor George Eder on Jan. 17.
One charge of third-degree sexual abuse will be dismissed.
Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 15. The state will recommend 36 months of supervised probation with 60 days in jail.
Sweet Home police arrested Morrell on Sept. 7 following an investigation that began on Aug. 24 after school officials learned of allegations of sexual contact between Morrell and a female juvenile. School officials reported it to the police.
Morrell had been the chaperone for a group of approximately 12 Sweet Home students at a scholastic competition in Portland. A 17-year-old female student from Lebanon also attended with the group and spent three nights in a Portland motel.
During that time, the Lebanon juvenile allegedly shared the motel room and bed with Morrell for two nights, said Police Chief Bob Burford. Following that, he allegedly had sexual contact with the juvenile four times.
As part of the agreement, Morrell, who was born in 1982, had to admit sexual contact with the victim on four separate occasions.
Morrell was the business teacher at Sweet Home High School. The district terminated his employment in October following an investigation by the district. He is under investigation by the Teachers Standards and Practices Commission.
Morrell’s case was one of several, involving people with local ties, that have been resolved in recent weeks. The others are:
Mark D. Newens, 23, pleaded no contest to first-degree assault, a class A felony, on Jan. 11.
He was sentenced to 90 months in prison and 36 months of post-prison supervision and fined $142.
The charge stemmed from the Nov. 29 stabbing of Donald Ames Sr.
After the stabbing, Ames stumbled into Chewy’s Sports Pub, 1200 12th Ave., seeking help. Officers searched the area, located and arrested Newens at Tamarack Street.
Ames underwent surgery and has recovered from the stabbing.
Josh Lee Shaddon 33, a former Sweet Home and Crawfordsville resident, has been committed to the Oregon State Hospital and life under the jurisdiction of the Psychiatric Review Board for murdering his mother, Gerlene Thorne, on Oct. 23, 2009 in Brownsville.
He also pleaded guilty in Linn County Circuit Court to attempted first-degree assault against his stepfather, Mike Thorne, over an incident in September 2009 where Shaddon had pointed a firearm at Thorne. The guilty plea was based on an agreement between the district attorney’s office and Shaddon. In exchange for a guilty plea, a charge of attempted murder was dismissed.
He was sentenced to 16 months in prison with time served.
In the murder case, a doctor testified that Shaddon suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, a psychotic disorder and meth psychosis.
The verdict and sentence were rendered in open court by Judge Tom McHill, who signed the verdict on Dec. 20.
Blake Leas Donalson pleaded guilty in Linn County Circuit Court to two counts of harassment, a class A misdemeanor, on Dec.