Nearly two decades after admitting he molested a 12-year-old student, a former Phoenix-area elementary school teacher and youth soccer coach is asking a Maricopa County judge to cut him loose from lifetime probation. Josh Jacobson told the court this week that he has done the required treatment, kept to the rules for years and no longer needs a probation officer watching his every move. The judge listened, then took the request under advisement after Friday’s hearing.
Jacobson reminded the court that he accepted lifetime probation almost 20 years ago in order to avoid a longer prison sentence and said he has spent 19 years under tight supervision, Arizona’s Family reported. He described strict limits on any contact with minors, including a requirement that parents obtain probation department approval and sign notarized letters before he can interact with their children. His attorney argued that Jacobson has “completed required treatment and developed necessary life skills to live independently.”
Case History And Survivor Advocacy
According to reporting from the Phoenix New Times, Jacobson pleaded guilty in 2007 to sexually abusing a student and took a deal that gave him nine months in jail and lifetime probation. The girl he abused, Kayleigh Kozak, has since become a high-profile victims’ rights advocate. She helped push through changes commonly called “Kayleigh’s Law,” which allow survivors to seek lifetime no-contact protections from the people who harmed them.
Risk Assessments And Courtroom Clash
Prosecutors told the judge that Jacobson has refused state-ordered sex offender risk assessments for the last four years, and they argued that refusal undercuts his plea to end supervision. Victim advocate Dan Lundell called that refusal a major red flag. Kozak also addressed the court, telling the judge, “I will never be given a second chance from the things that he chose to do to me,” and urged the court to keep probation in place. If probation is lifted, Jacobson would no longer be under active court supervision, but he would still have to register as a sex offender, officials told Arizona’s Family.
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