'He'll never teach again.' Former Sandy Valley teacher pleads guilty to child sex crime

SANDY TWP. - A former Sandy Valley teacher is heading to prison for sexual abuse of a minor.

Jason Neading, 39, of East Sparta, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Stark County Common Pleas Court to a gross sexual imposition charge, a third-degree felony. As part of a plea agreement with the state, a first-degree felony rape charge was dismissed during Wednesday's final pretrial court hearing.

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Judge Chryssa Hartnett sentenced Neading to four years in prison with mandatory sex offender registration for 25 years after his release.

The former eighth-grade social studies teacher at Sandy Valley Middle School resigned in April.

The sexual conduct with a minor outlined in the indictment occurred between Jan. 3, 2017, and Jan. 2, 2020.

The victim was not a student in Neading's class and didn't involve his role as a teacher, Stark County Assistant Prosecutor Dan Petricini told the Canton Repository back in April.

"I'm very pleased he took responsibility without forcing the victim to move forward to trial. ... He's going to be in prison for the next several years and he'll never teach again," Petricini said.

Neading was represented by defense attorneys Don Malarcik and Jacob Will.

"Mr. Neading was able to resolve his case without putting everyone involved through the stresses of what would be a difficult and public trial. He has no prior criminal history and no prior discipline as a teacher. Because of this conviction, Mr. Neading will never teach again," Neading's attorneys said Thursday in a joint statement.

Reach Cassandra at cnist@gannett.com.

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