A former Konawaena Middle School teacher was convicted last week of continuous sexual assault of a minor younger than 14 and attempted first-degree sexual assault.
John Lee Franks, also known as John Pryor, 47, of Ocean View was found guilty of the charges, both Class A felonies, after a bench trial in February before Third Circuit Chief Judge Wendy DeWeese in Kona.
According to court documents, Franks on Nov. 9, 2021, and Feb. 10 and Feb. 14, 2022, engaged in “sexual penetration” with a minor girl born in 2009.
DeWeese on Thursday issued her findings of facts and conclusions of law.
Franks is scheduled for sentencing Aug. 18. He faces a possible 20-year prison term for each charge.
Franks is free on $50,000 bail he posted following his initial arraignment in March 2022.
Franks on Oct. 10, 2023, entered a change of plea, pleading no contest to a lesser-included charge of third-degree sexual assault based on an offer by prosecutors. The charges of first-degree sexual assault and continuous sexual assault of a minor were dropped at that time because of the plea deal.
Franks had a sentencing date of Dec. 29, 2023, and faced a maximum five-year prison term. However, he withdrew his no-contest plea earlier in December 2023, setting up February’s bench trial.
Franks most recently worked as a student services coordinator at Konawaena Middle School. He was first employed with the department in 2008 as a special education teacher.
According to the state Department of Education, the offenses didn’t occur on a public school campus.
DOE spokesman Derek Inoshita told West Hawaii Today in October 2023 that Franks was no longer a DOE employee, having left the department in January 2023.
Inoshita could not comment on why Franks left the department due to employee privacy laws.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
