Teacher pleads not guilty to sexual acts

A Huntington Beach resident and high school teacher pleaded not guilty to engaging in sexual acts with an underage student Wednesday.

Christopher John Ontiveros, 42, is charged with three felony counts of sexual penetration by foreign object of a minor, one count each of distributing harmful sexual material to a minor, oral copulation with a minor, contacting a child with intent to commit sexual penetration and one misdemeanor count of sexual battery.

Ontiveros faces up to six years in state prison.

He taught history at Oxford Academy in Cypress, where he is accused of sending a 17-year-old female student sexual text messages and making unsolicited sexual advances. Ontiveros is accused of sexually assaulting the girl in his classroom and car.

He has been out on $100,000 bail.

Ontiveros is expected to begin a preliminary trial hearing at 8:30 a.m. Feb. 11 in Courtroom W-14 at the West Justice Center in Westminster.

— Britney Barnes