Ex-teacher to plead guilty to child sex charges in Delaware
A former Delaware teacher facing child sex charges has reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors.
Smyrna High School teacher Joshua Rutheford is accused of trying to meet what he thought was a teenage girl for sex at a Dover park. (photo courtesy Del. DOJ)
A former Delaware teacher facing child sex charges has reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors.
A court order filed Tuesday indicates that Joshua Rutherford plans to enter a guilty plea at a hearing scheduled for Feb. 21.
The plea agreement comes after the judge last year refused to dismiss the indictment against Rutherford, a former Smyrna High School teacher and track coach.
Rutherford was charged with two counts each of seeking child pornography and attempted inducement of a minor. Those charges could result in a maximum life sentence upon conviction.
Authorities say Rutherford chatted online with an undercover investigator posing as a 14-year-old girl’s father and expressed interest in meeting the girl for sex. Prosecutors say he also boasted of a past sexual encounter with a real high-school-aged girl.
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