Suspended school dean from Hunlock convicted of sexual misconduct
Posted: January 17, 2015 - 6:24pm
WILKES-BARRE (AP) -- A Hunlock Creek man who worked as a Coughlin High School dean was convicted Friday of corruption of minors in a case where he was charged with having sex with a 16-year-old student a decade ago.
Jurors in Luzerne County deliberated for less than two hours Friday night before convicting 48-year-old Stephen Stahl of one misdemeanor count.
Stahl has been suspended from his position as dean of students at Wilkes-Barre's Coughlin High School. He said he was innocent and was attending a funeral when prosecutors alleged the relationship began.
Defense attorney Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. said his client was disappointed with the verdict. He had cited inconsistencies in police reports and the alleged victim's story and asserted that "there was no real investigation in this case."
Stahl is scheduled to be sentenced March 23.