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C.P. teacher charged with sexual abuse By CHRIS BRISTOL A Central Point teacher who was fired Tuesday for "unprofessional conduct" has been charged with sex crimes involving a teenage girl. Wearing jail greens and a pink jail-issue undershirt, 52-year-old Thomas George Lees appeared before a Jackson County judge Wednesday on two counts each of third-degree sexual abuse and attempted third-degree rape, one count of harassment involving intimate touching and two counts of furnishing a minor with liquor. All five charges are misdemeanors. By definition, third-degree rape and sexual abuse involve a victim under the age of 16. The charges do not allege force; they are crimes because Oregon law specifies that persons under the age of 18 are legally incapable of consenting to sexual acts. Lees, who taught eighth-grade social studies at Scenic Middle School for 15 years, did not enter a plea. Judge Patricia Crain denied his request for a court-appointed attorney and told him to come back in one week, the day before Thanksgiving. Central Point police arrested Lees Tuesday, the same day he was fired by Superintendent Candy Manary. He spent the night in jail, but Crain released him Wednesday on his own recognizance. Deputy District Attorney Judi Harper said all three sex charges involve a girl between the ages of 14 and 18. The alcohol charges involve two girls, including the first victim. The charges stem from incidents in September of 1997, court records show. Harper declined to provide more specific information, including the exact ages of the alleged victims and whether they were students of Lees. According to Manary, the case stemmed from "some concerns" that were brought to the attention of Scenic Middle School Principal Bob Bowers in June. Manary said school officials began an internal investigation that was not finished until last week. Lees was placed on paid administrative leave at the start of the new school year in September, she added. "There was enough concern that we put him on administrative leave while our investigation continued," she said. "He hasn't been teaching this year." Manary was hazy on the details of the school's investigation, saying only that it involved a "former" student. "She was originally a student at Scenic, but I can't tell if that's when anything exactly started," Manary said. "I don't know for sure." She said Lees also coached basketball last year. She said she wasn't sure what team (boys or girls) and also said she didn't know or couldn't remember if Lees ever won any awards or commendations. Lees used to live on Jackson Creek Drive in Central Point with his wife, who filed for divorce Oct. 21. He now lists an address on Grape Street in Medford as his residence. Manary said police learned of the allegations from the school district. Meanwhile, the state Teacher Standards and Practices Commission is reviewing Lees' teaching license. A spokesman for the agency in Salem could not be reached for comment. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA