A former Fairfield High School teacher was sentenced Monday, November 9th, to an indeterminate sentence not to exceed seven years following his convictions for grooming and sexual exploitation of a student.
District Court Judge Michael Carpenter sentenced Vannen “Rusty” Crabtree Jr., of Richland, to indeterminate sentences not to exceed five years for grooming, a Class D felony, and two years for sexual exploitation by a school employee, an aggravated misdemeanor. The court ordered the sentences to run consecutively and committed Crabtree to the custody of the Iowa Department of Corrections immediately following sentencing.
Crabtree previously pleaded guilty to both offenses. The charges arose from a relationship he developed with a minor female student while employed at Fairfield High School. Investigators documented an extended course of electronic communications, secret meetings, sexual conduct, and deliberate efforts to prevent others from learning of the relationship.
At sentencing, the state presented evidence of Crabtree’s communications with the student, his movements and meetings with her, his internet search history, and his efforts to conceal the relationship as law enforcement scrutiny increased. Among the evidence recovered were communications in which Crabtree discussed deleting stored evidence from their phones, text messages, and a Snapchat account in order to “stop or extremely slow down any investigation.” Digital evidence also documented searches concerning Iowa’s age of consent, emancipation of minors, concealing phone applications and location information, and the retention of Snapchat messages following deletion.
The state requested consecutive sentences, arguing the two convictions addressed separate wrongs. The grooming conviction reflected the deliberate process of developing, sexualizing, facilitating, and concealing the relationship with a minor. The sexual exploitation conviction reflected Crabtree’s use of his position as a school employee to engage in sexual conduct with a student.
In ordering consecutive sentences, the Court noted: “The exploitative nature of the crime, and with the facts of this crime in particular. The ongoing and deliberate nature of Defendant’s conduct. That Defendant has good employment, strong family support, and the affection and trust of his community, but still made the deliberate and ongoing choice to engage in sexual relationships with a student.”
Jefferson County Attorney Chauncey Moulding issued the following statement:
“This was not an isolated lapse in judgment. The evidence showed a sustained series of choices. Mr. Crabtree cultivated a secret close personal relationship with a student, escalated that relationship into sexual conduct, and then took deliberate steps to hide what he had done. He knew the relationship was wrong while it was occurring, and he continued anyway. The Court’s decision to impose consecutive sentences appropriately recognizes the seriousness of a teacher using a position of trust and confidence to engage in a sexual relationship with a student. Mr. Crabtree was a person entrusted with the welfare of students, and when that trust is violated, significant consequences must follow.”
Moulding added, “The Fairfield Police Department, with the assistance of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, conducted a careful and thorough investigation in a case involving a substantial amount of digital, forensic, testimonial, and DNA evidence. The strength of this evidence and professionalism of this investigation led to a successful outcome in this case.”
In addition to incarceration, Crabtree was ordered to register as a sex offender and will be subject to a 10-year special sentence of supervision following completion of his underlying sentence. The court also entered a five-year no-contact order protecting the victim. Crabtree was ordered to pay fines of $1,025 on the grooming conviction and $855 on the sexual exploitation conviction, plus applicable surcharges.
The Jefferson County Attorney’s Office asked that the privacy of the victim and her family continue to be respected.
