Teacher Surrenders in Harassment Case

FULLERTON —  A veteran Orange County high school teacher surrendered to authorities Thursday after returning from a Caribbean vacation to face charges that he molested a female student and sexually harassed four others.

George Melvin Fairchild, 52, was released on his own recognizance by Judge Roger B. Robbins after an appearance in North Orange County Municipal Court. The judge cited Fairchild’s longtime ties to the county, where he has lived and worked for more than two decades.

Fairchild’s attorney, Tom Goethals, said outside court that his client is innocent. Fairchild “is absolutely shocked. He feels terrible. He is absolutely committed to his students,” Goethals said.

Fairchild was charged July 13 with eight counts of felony lewd and lascivious conduct with a 15-year-old student, two counts of misdemeanor sexual battery on two students over age 16, and five counts of misdemeanor child annoyance against five students.

The felony charge stems from a girl’s complaint that Fairchild touched her breasts and squeezed her torso on several occasions after class. Child annoyance refers to using sexually explicit language.

Fairchild could face more than seven years in prison if convicted on all felony charges, a prosecutor said.

Police said they are also investigating whether Fairchild offered some female students higher grades in exchange for sex, police said. Fairchild has been placed on unpaid leave from his job at Sunny Hills High School, where he has taught science for 28 years.

According to a search warrant prepared by the Fullerton Police Department, some of Fairchild’s former students alleged that he made comments about their breast size and propositioned them.

One student told a police investigator that Fairchild “grabbed the groin area of her jeans,” and said he wanted to have sex with her, according to the warrant. The teen-agers’ names were not released because they are minors.

According to the warrant, one teen-ager complained to Sunny Hills Principal George Giokaris in September that Fairchild had touched her torso. The police said they were not notified of any incidents until May.