FORMER Ballarat teacher Michelle Lynn Dennis, who had sex with two students, will spend more time behind bars than other female teachers who have committed a similar crime.
The 33-year-old was yesterday convicted and sentenced to four years and three months' jail, with a minimum of two years and 10 months to serve.
The Sebastopol woman was 31 years old when she lured the boys, aged 14 and 17, into having sex with her while she was employed as a music teacher at Ballarat High School. She had sex with one boy
twice, and oral sex with the other boy.
County Court Judge Susan Cohen sentenced Dennis to a longer jail term than other female teachers who committed a similar crime because she had sex with more than one student.
Judge Cohen compared Dennis's case to that of former Melbourne physical education teacher Karen Louise Ellis, who was jailed in 2005 for two years and eight months, with a minimum six months to
serve.
"Your offences were committed against two different young people, which I regard as more serious than had there been one person involved," she said.
"You have not shown anything like that degree of remorse or empathy for your victims (that Ellis showed)."
The County Court at Ballarat was told Dennis, now 33, sent more than 1300 text messages to the two students over a 14-month period before her arrest in October last year.
She sent one of the boys naked photographs of herself and invited one of his friends to have a threesome, which the friend rejected.
The court was told Dennis had arranged to collect one of the boys and drove him to Victoria Park, where they had sex on her car bonnet. Afterwards, she sent text messages telling him how good it was.
A few months later, Dennis offered to drive the boy home but instead took him to her house for sex.
The other boy was also collected by Dennis, who drove him to her house to watch television and drink alcohol before engaging in oral sex.
The court was told one of the boys suffered emotional trauma when the incidents were revealed publicly, causing him to perform poorly in his exams and lose a scholarship.
Dennis denied the crimes until her scheduled trial last month, when she pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual penetration of a child under supervision and one count of sexual penetration of a child under 16.
Judge Cohen told Dennis that all adults had a duty not to lead young children into such behaviour.
"Teachers have a high ability to influence students and that gives them a responsibility not to abuse their positions,'' she said.
Judge Cohen said the fact Dennis was abusing alcohol at the time of the crimes did not explain and excuse her behaviour.
Dennis, who held her head down and sobbed when her sentence was read out, was ordered to be placed on the sex offenders' register for life.
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