Former Murfreesboro City Schools Band Teacher convicted for sexual exploitation of a minor

May 20, 2015 at 08:44 am by bryan


A former band teacher for the City of Murfreesboro School System was recently in court to face charges dealing with the sexual exploitation of a minor.

On Tuesday, 35-year old Lavar R. Jernigan of Christiana, was found guilty by the Rutherford County Courts. When Jernigan was arrested in 2013, he was a band teacher who assisted at Cason Lane Academy, Scales Elementary, and Hobgood Elementary Schools in Murfreesboro.

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You may recall the original story we reported in 2013... Detective Tommy Roberts with the Murfreesboro Police Department was contacted by the Lawrenceburg Sheriff's Department in April of 2013 in regards to Jernigan's involvement with a student. Jernigan and a minor he allegedly met at a band camp where he was a teacher, reportedly had an inappropriate relationship. Detective Roberts recovered a cell phone that Jernigan possessed and upon processing the phone for evidence, multiple images of child pornography were found. The report WGNS obtained stated, "Once all the evidence was obtained, the case was presented to the Rutherford County Grand Jury. Mr. Jernigan was indicted on 45-counts involving possession of child porn."

On Tuesday (5/19/15), Jernigan was found guilty on six counts during a trial in the courtroom of Judge Royce Taylor. Jernigan will be sentenced in August where he could face up to 12 years for each of the six counts he has been convicted of. In other words, he could spend the next 72-years of his life in prison, making him107-years old at the end of that possible sentence. That sentence would be the equivalent of life in prison.

Looking back to when the case was originally opened in 2013, Jernigan was first apprehended shortly after the start of morning classes at Hobgood Elementary School and charged with solicitation of a minor and sexual exploitation of a minor. That of course was the start to a long list of charges that were filed after the case came out of the February Grand Jury in 2014.

Original Charges:

  • Esp. Aggravated Sexual Exploitation X15 Counts
  • Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of a Minor X15 Counts
  • Sexual Exploitation of a Minor X15 Counts

Source:

Original police arrest report not released
2014 Arrest - MPD Arrest Report #14-2322
Original information released by MPD Sgt. Kyle Evans

2014 Court docket information - HERE

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