Carolyn Peirce, The Examiner
2007-08-31 07:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

Ellicott City -

A former Howard County teacher pleaded guilty Tuesday to having sex with a teenager, but charges involving a second alleged victim were dropped when he didn’t cooperate with prosecutors.

Kirsten Kinley, 28, a former special education teacher at Marriotts Ridge High School in Marriottsville, entered into a plea agreement before Howard Circuit Judge Diane Leasure.

Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Murphy is requesting at least 18 months in prison, with a 10-year maximum sentence; a psychosexual evaluation; sex-offender treatment; no unsupervised contact with minors; restricted access to the Internet; and registration as a sex offender.

“Prison time should be reserved for persons who are a danger to society,” said Thomas Morrow, Kinley’s lawyer. “She is not a dangerous person.”

Kinley was arrested in February after the 15-year-old victim told his therapist about his December 2004 sexual relationship with Kinley while she taught at Hammond Middle School in Laurel.