July 30, 2007 - David B. Novinski, 35, an Ursuline Academy teacher, turned himself in to police. He was arrested on an accusation of inappropriate relationship with a 17-year-old female student.
School administrators said they received a report of improper conduct in June and contacted the state child abuse hotline. The school was conducting an internal investigation, and the accused teacher has been suspended.
Texas law states that sexual contact between a teacher and student is illegal even if the student is of consensual age.
GRAND JUROR POSTS ONLINE Jan 25, 2008 - A grand juror commented at least ten times about the case at badteacher.com The grand juror is unnamed and is under investigation.
In his postings, the juror does not give an opinion about the case. Other posters question whether he should talk about the case. He responds that he "took an oath to keep the proceedings of the GJ secret" but can say some things.GUILTY PLEA AND SENTENCING Feb 15 - Novinski pleaded guilty having sexual contact with a 17-year-old student. He was given 10 years of deferred adjudication probation – where a judge finds that there is enough evidence to convict but defers a decision on whether to do so, pending the outcome of the probation.
"I would LOVE to give my opinion on 'whether novo is guilty.' Only us twelve know our collective opinion. It just has to play out through the courts," the grand juror wrote on Dec. 22. "If I were to say anything more, I could be subject to a GJ indictment, and in now [sic] way whatsoever do I want to contaminate novo's day in court."
If Mr. Novinski successfully completes his probation, he will not have a criminal record. He is not required to register as a sex offender. As a condition of his probation, he is prohibited from teaching or doing counseling work. The district attorney can still take action against the grand juror. No decision ye.
