School principal: "Initially, we were shocked and disappointed by the accusations and the arrest. I guess it's appropriate for what the charges are," Hollingsworth said. "It's very disappointing when anyone makes mistakes and makes bad choices."
March 5, 2008 - Gregory Rayburn, 54, a social studies 
teacher at Rio Americano High School, was arrested on 15 counts of molesting a child under the age of 18 and two counts of sexual battery - all charges misdemeanors.
Rayburn was placed on paid administrative leave in December, pending the outcome of a Sheriff's Department investigation. A "few" students came to administrators Dec. 6 with complaints about Rayburn, according to Principal Rob Hollingsworth. The students had "some sort of contact" with Rayburn but he declined to elaborate.
His bail was set at $120,000.
Full Name: Gregory Jackson Rayburn
Posted comment at the story:
As a teacher, I know how a group of kids can band together and make accusations because they don't like a teacher. I'd first check into what types of students are making the accusations, troublemakers or good students. No, that isn't always right because troublemakers might actually get involved into trouble with a teacher who is also a "troublemaker"On the other hand,
I'm concerned about some of the principal's statements. He "guesses" it is appropriate action based on the charges. I know we don't know the details but to charge someone with molestation so sexually motivated touching occurred. AND "It's very disappointing when anyone makes mistakes and makes bad choices." He's classifing molestation as a mistake or bad choice? It sound to me he is minimizing the gravity of such offenses. Child molestors are sexually deviant preditors who intentionally and knowingly target children to satisy their own bizarre fetishes. ...Then there is:
why on earth can possesion of drugs be a felony (a victimless crime), and sexual misconduct with a minor(17 counts, including battery) only a misdemeanor... who are we protecting with our laws?!! this guy is lucky i dont determine legislation on my own because melestation would be a capital crime. thats just the oppinion of a 29 year old man with no kids, how am i going to sleep at night when i do have children?From News10: Sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Tim Curran says Rayburn's alleged victims are two 17-year-old and two 16-year-old girls. Annoyance charges typically deal with inappropriate touching or comments. Sexual battery involves non-consensus touching of an intimate part of another person.
Sheriff's detectives urge any with information about the case or Rayburn to contact them at (916) 874-5070.
Sacramento County Sheriff's Department site. No press release at this time.
DETAILS March 6 - Rayburn was arrested after four female students say he persuaded them to dress in revealing "military garb" for a photo shoot on school property and inappropriately touched one of them, authorities said. The incidents happened in the 2006-2007 school year. Students approached a vice principal with claims that Rayburn had acted inappropriately in December.
Rayburn also had "numerous conversations with these victims (that) were very sexual in nature," Links said
It was the second time Gregory Jackson Rayburn has been investigated for similar accusations at a San Juan Unified School District campus, authorities said. Prosecutors declined to pursue the first case in 2005 at Bella Vista High School, and he moved on to teach at Rio Americano in 2006.
TT - Odd place to place quotes in that second sentence. Why not around "photo shoot" or around "revealing" both of which might warrant the quotations. What exactly what does his military record have to do with the allegations? Are we to assume, as one poster does at the story, that he is mentally deranged because he served in the military?
(If you think that's far-fetched, you obviously are not familiar with the Sacramento Bee or the McClatchy newspaper chain. The newspaper's publisher Janis Heaphy was booed and heckled off the stage by a largely - almost exclusively - liberal crowd at a mid-year graduation ceremony in 2001 that she tried to politicize with a speech against the war on terrorism.)
Interestingly ignored by the newspaper reporter in favor of the he-served-in-the-military angle, is the fact that while Rayburn had been accused and investigated by both the school and police in 2005 right up to the district attorney before being moved to teach in Rio Americano. However, officials at Rio Americano, apparently, were not told of those allegations or suspicions. More than one girl at Bella Vista made similar accusations to investigators, according to Sacramento Sheriff's Sgt. Micki Links.
A better newspaper might ask the school for Rayburn's personnel records to see if he was reprimanded. No matter what schools say about personnel records being sacrosanct, they are frequently flogged to reporters when the records serve to exonerate district officials. You can, however, absolutely count on the Sacramento Bee not being so public spirited.
