Published Thursday, November 29, 2007 5:30 PM

Ex-teacher guilty of having sex with student

By CRAIG KAPITAN
Eagle Staff Writer

It took a jury just less than five hours Thursday to convict former Bryan High teacher Ricky Ray James of having sex with an underage student.

Jurors returned the verdict about 4:45 p.m. and are expected to return to the Brazos County Courthouse Friday morning to determine his sentence. James, 50, could face up to 20 years in prison for the second-degree felony sexual assault of a child charge. The retired Air Force veteran is also eligible for probation.

James was arrested in January, after a junior at the school attending his Air Force Junior ROTC class told police she had been meeting with him at his apartment for sex for nearly a year.

The teen was able to describe items in his apartment to investigators and led them to the home. The defense, however, contended that the teen was persuaded by her mother to lie about a relationship.

James' attorneys briefly called two witnesses to testify Thursday before both sides presented closing arguments to the jury. The defendant opted not to testify on his own behalf.

For more information on this developing story, read Friday's edition of The Eagle.

• Craig Kapitan's e-mail address is craig.kapitan@theeagle.com.

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