Elementary school teacher accused of giving inappropriate 'hugs' charged with abuse

KEARNS — An elementary school teacher in the Granite School District is accused of inappropriately touching students under the guise of giving them hugs.

Eric Christoffersen, 40, of Kearns, was charged Thursday in 3rd District Court with three counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, a first-degree felony.

Christoffersen, who was placed on leave by the district in April when the allegations came to light, was fired Thursday after the charges were filed.

"Granite School District and law enforcement investigated these allegations at the time (in April) and the employee has been on leave since the investigation ensued," the district said in a prepared statement on Thursday. "We have now been notified by the prosecutor that they will be filing charges against the employee. Given this new information, Granite District has now moved to separate employment with this individual."

The district's website listed Christoffersen as a teacher at Arcadia Elementary in Taylorsville.

The investigation began when Granite School District police were called to investigate a report from an 11-year-old girl that her teacher, Christoffersen, "would ask for hugs" but then also touch other parts of her, according to charging documents.

"(She) recalled an incident when Christoffersen picked her up and twirled her around by her arms and said that after he put her back down, he touched her butt. She described that his hand was on her back and then he'd slide down to her butt, and then off her body," the charges state.

The girl told police that she believed Christoffersen "would pretend it was an accident," according to the charges.

A second student also reported that she and other students were inappropriately touched by Christoffersen.

"She recalled an incident when he called her to his desk to see something, and when she could not see it, he 'gave her a boost by the buttocks.' (She) said that while he was holding her, his hand squeezed her buttocks and described that this made her feel uncomfortable and unsafe," the charges state.

The girl said this happened more than one time, according to prosecutors.

A third student told police that "Christoffersen would ask for a hug 'every day,' and she would hug him 'multiple times a day,' and during the hugs, Christoffersen would touch her on her thigh or waist and would 'act sad' when she did not want to hug him," the charges state. The girl also reported being hugged and inappropriately touched in the same way Christoffersen allegedly touched one of the other victims.

Prosecutors say the alleged incidents date back to last school year. In addition, students told investigators that Christoffersen told one student that her leg was "sexy," the charges state.

When questioned by police, "Christoffersen admitted that he asks students for a hug," charging documents state. He recalled that one time, while hugging one of the alleged victims, another student yelled out that Christoffersen was inappropriately touching the student, but he denied it happened.

He also stated that he's "been accused of favoring female students but countered that 'female students are more huggers than the male students,'" the charges continue. He told police "that the students were lying and are 'attention seekers.'"

Prosecutors contend in their charging documents that Christoffersen "used his position of trust as an elementary school teacher to prey upon the victims in this case. The victims reported that the defendant touched their buttocks multiple times during school, recess, and in the hallway, and would consistently find reasons to hug them.

"The defendant also stated that, along with the 'pretty girls,' he also talks to the 'ugly girls or students that (he) doesn't find attractive, like physically attractive,'" the charges state.

Additionally, police learned "during the course of the investigation … that (Christoffersen) had been contacting witnesses and the families of victims, requesting that they speak on his behalf. It was also learned that the victims in this case were being harassed by family members of the defendant. (Christoffersen) also requested to send a 'cease-and-desist letter' to one of the victims for calling him a 'creep,'" the charges state.

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