Former U.S. porn star barred from working as teacher
'We were hoping we could show you could overcome your past,' lawyer says
The Associated Press
Posted: Jan 16, 2013 11:13 AM ET
Last Updated: Jan 16, 2013 11:29 AM ET
A former science teacher in California has been barred from returning to the classroom because of what one judge described as the ongoing availability of her pornographic materials. (iStock)
A middle-school science teacher fired after students learned she had appeared in pornographic movies had hoped not just to get her job back, but to set a precedent for people looking to escape an embarrassing personal history.
A three-judge commission put a decisive stop to both, saying firmly and unanimously that Stacie Halas should not be in the classroom.
“We were hoping we could show you could overcome your past,” Halas lawyer Richard Schwab said Tuesday. “I think she’s representative of a lot of people who may have a past that may not involve anything illegal or anything that hurts anybody.”
Judge Julie Cabos-Owen said such a past matters in an age when technology makes porn easy to access and hard to bury.
“Although her pornography career has concluded, the ongoing availability of her pornographic materials on the Internet will continue to impede her from being an effective teacher and respected colleague,” Cabos-Owen said in the 46-page decision issued Friday by the Commission on Professional Competence.
Halas, 32, was continually deceitful about her nine-month career in porn before she went to work at the school, the judges said.
Schwab said Halas “was being honest and forthright, but was embarrassed and humiliated by her past experience in the adult industry.”
Halas was fired in April from her job as a science teacher at Haydock Intermediate School in Oxnard after online videos of her in porn were discovered by students and teachers.
Student claims that the teacher was moonlighting as a porn star were initially dismissed after school officials said they couldn’t find any images of her on the Internet — but they were using the school’s computers, which don’t allow access to porn.
Share Tools
Top News Headlines
- Deadly Oklahoma tornado confirmed as most powerful type
- Emergency workers neared the end of their search Tuesday afternoon for survivors in Moore, Okla., following a deadly tornado that weather officials said was now classified among the most powerful type of twister. more »
- Children driven around too much, Canadian report suggests
- Fewer Canadian kids are commuting by walking or biking as a new report reveals a marked decline among young people using active modes of transportation. more »
- Senate set to debate expense audits amid greater scrutiny
- The Senate will debate its own committee's reports into living expenses claimed by three senators Tuesday night in a session that could see Senator Mike Duffy's claims sent back for a second audit. more »
- 'Speculation' in Bosma death unfair to accused, says lawyer
- "Speculation" surrounding the accused, Dellen Millard, in the case of Timothy Bosma's death is unfairly poisoning the suspect's image, his lawyer said Tuesday. more »
Must Watch
Latest World News Headlines
- Baseball fuels dreams, desperation in Dominican Republic
- The Toronto Blue Jays have a number of stars from the Dominican Republic, but in the shadow of these successful players is an equally important story about the deaths of young players and a country desperately struggling to balance hope and poverty. more »
- Keith Boag: Have you heard about the murderous abortion doctor?
- The gruesome trial and murder conviction of Philadelphia abortion provider Dr. Kermit Gosnell is unlikely to change American abortion law, Keith Boag writes. But it has U.S. journalists questioning their priorities and how they cover such a sensitive issue. more »
- Apple CEO Tim Cook grilled on Irish tax scandal
- The world's most valuable company, Apple Inc., employs a group of affiliate companies located in Ireland to avoid paying billions of dollars in U.S. income taxes, a Senate investigation has found — and its CEO will be questioned Tuesday. more »
- Top figures barred from Iran's presidential election
- Iran's election overseers removed potential wildcard candidates from the presidential race Tuesday, blocking a top aide of outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and a former president who revived hopes of reformers. more »
The National
The Current
- The morning after the Oklahoma tornado May. 21, 2013 4:17 PM The rescue efforts and aftermath of yesterday's devastating tornado in Moore, Oklahoma.
- Deadly Oklahoma tornado confirmed as most powerful type
- 'Very upset' Harper wants fast Senate spending reform
- Microsoft unveils Xbox One
- Schoolchildren describe Oklahoma tornado terror
- Microsoft's Xbox revamp: Is the sun setting on game consoles?
- Mountie sues 13 ex-colleagues for sex assault, harassment
- Dellen Millard farm still under police watch
- Edmonton driver, 62, charged in boy's patio death
- Jodi Arias asks jury to spare her life

