A Fairfax County jury deliberated for just 47 minutes before acquitting a gym teacher from Centre Ridge Elementary School in Centreville on charges of aggravated sexual battery and abduction. Closing arguments made by the defendant's Virginia criminal lawyer about the effects of the case on the man's life caused jurors to become so distraught that the trial had to be briefly recessed.
Jurors were satisfied that the charges brought against on 43-year-old physical education teacher Sean Lanigan were of no merit, commenting to press:
"It was an easy decision," said juror Asmaa al-Ghafari. "I just hope Mr. Lanigan can get his life back."
"There was no evidence," juror Jacklyn West said. "There was no case."
Lanigan stood accused of molesting a 12-year-old girl in the school's gymnasium earlier this year. Charges against the defendant centered largely on the testimony of two sixth grade girls. The girls claimed that Lanigan had carried one of them into an equipment room, where he was said to have touched her inappropriately after placing her on a gym mat. The incident was alleged to have occurred on January 12th, and police learned of the allegations on January 15th. Fairfax detectives initially questioned Lanigan on January 20th, before arresting him on January 29th.
Lanigan, a teacher at Centre Ridge for 12 years and youth soccer coach for 20 years, testified that he often engaged in physical horseplay with students as he did with his own children but that he had not molested the child. Along with the defendant, five other people testified that there were no mats present in the equipment room where the molestation was alleged to have occurred. Lanigan's prime accuser also admitted in court to holding a "grudge" against the teacher for threatening to discipline her.
The girl claimed originally that the teacher touched her "breast and buttock" during the incident. To prevent against a conviction of aggravated sexual battery of someone younger than 13, Lanigan's Virginia criminal lawyer would have to argue that the defendant had no intent to "sexually molest, arouse or gratify any person, where the defendant intentionally touches the complaining witness's intimate parts or material clothing covering such intimate parts."
Sean Lanigan's case illustrates the havoc criminal charges can cause on an individual's life. Lanigan's Virginia criminal lawyer spoke during closing arguments of the difficulties endured by the defendant, who was identified publicly and suspended without pay. Fairfax County school officials were not able to say when or if the popular teacher would be restored to his job at Centre Ridge Elementary.
