A state appellate court panel has vacated a sexual misconduct conviction against a former Granite Hills High School teacher who was accused of engaging with a minor student in 2022. The appellate court on Friday reversed the jury’s conviction of Gerald Lopez on a child sex abuse material posses sion charge and a charge of child molestation, which stemmed from an investigation into text messages between the 54-year-old teacher and a then-17-year-old student. He can be retried for child molestation, the court ruled. Lopez, who taught English and coached sports at the East County school, was arrested in 2022 by El Cajon police for what prosecutors alleged was flirtation that escalated to physical touching. Prosecutors introduced into evidence more than 8,000 texts and 930 photos between the two. The opinion from a three-justice panel of the Fourth District Court of Appeal said there was insufficient evidence to support the child sexual abuse material conviction, which concerned a photograph the victim sent to Lopez. “Lopez contends his conviction for possession of child pornography must be reversed because the photograph does not depict Jane engaging in or simulating any act that is defined as ‘sexual conduct’ by the applicable statutes. We agree,” the opinion reads. Further, the panel ruled that jurors were allowed to hear several days of “irrelevant and prejudicial testimony (from the victim) explaining how Lopez’s statements and actions made her feel,” while the defense was denied an opportunity to present rebuttal evidence to counter her testimony. The trial judge later instructed the jury to disregard large portions of the girl’s testimony. While the misdemeanor child molestation count was vacated because of the issue involving the victim’s testimony, the appellate panel said there was sufficient evidence to support the conviction and that Lopez could be retried on that count. Lopez was convicted by an El Cajon jury in 2024, and then sentenced to a suspended term of six months in county jail, plus probation. The same jury acquitted Lopez of more than a dozen other charges and hung on five counts of sending harmful material to a minor, which were later dismissed. ...read more read less