Utah: Ex-teacher accused of sex with students says one boy's grades improved

Utah teacher Brianne Altice who pleaded guilty to sexual contact with three of her male students at the Davis High School has defended her case in a two-page response filed in the federal court. The former English teacher has said the 16-year-old boy whose parents have filed a lawsuit against her had better grades during the school term she was his teacher.

Altice, 36, said in her written response that the boy would, "thwart inappropriate comments directed at her." She said the teenager would often come to her for advice on his issues with his parents and she would always tell him, "to communicate with his parents and continue to do his best in school."

Altice further wrote in her response that the teenager had better grades during the school year (2012-13) in which she was his teacher, saying she "had no evil or malicious intent to cause harm." According to the boy's parents who lost the lawsuit, the school is to blame as well for not taking timely action against Altice despite several employees complaining of her behaviour. The attorneys of the school district, however claim the school officials had no knowledge of Altice's involvement with the three victims, reported NBC4i.

A second lawsuit has also been filed against Altice by a separate victim and his parents who claim the former teacher took advantage of the teenager's troubled childhood. All three boys in the case had testified that Altice had sex with them and she had pleaded guilty to forcible sexual assault in 2013. Altice is presently serving a sentence between two and 30 years.