Circuit Judge Michael Town sentenced a former McKinley High School teacher's assistant to 10 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 17-year-old special-education student, saying he “;crossed the line.”;

“;What could you have been thinking?”; Town asked Gregory Keau, 30, who had pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of fourth-degree sexual assault for attacks between March 1 and April 2, 2007, and on May 16, 2007.

 

  Former McKinley Teacher’s Aide Sentenced

 

  Gregory Keau was sentenced to serve 10 years behind bars after he sexually assaulted a special education student. 

 

[  Watch  ]

 

 

 

 

  Deputy Prosecutor Thalia Murphy said Keau not only betrayed the trust of his students, but also gave the girl a sexually transmitted disease for which she was later treated.

Keau began sexually assaulting a mildly mentally retarded girl when she was 16. He was a teacher's assistant in the girl's special-education class.

Murphy praised Jonathan Cariaga, a former skills trainer at the school who caught Keau sexually assaulting the girl on May 16.

Cariaga recalled that day in testimony yesterday, saying that when the class met for lunch in the kitchen of the classroom, he noticed Keau and the victim were missing. When Cariaga entered the back room of the classroom, he saw Keau forcing the girl to do a sexual act.

“;She looked distressed,”; Cariaga said of the girl, while describing Keau as having “;an intense look, not angry or anything, just concentrated and focused.”;

Keau begged Cariaga not to tell anyone because he had almost finished training as a firefighter and it would “;bring him down,”; Cariaga said.

“;I said, 'No, there's nothing to talk about,'”; Cariaga testified. Cariaga took the girl to a safe area and told her it was not her fault, and he reported the incident to authorities.

The girl's family is from the Marshall Islands and now lives in public housing. The girl's mother said her daughter is “;not the same girl as before”; and has nightmares about the sexual assaults.

When police searched Keau's desk at school, they found a copy of a book that taught how to stalk women.

“;One wonders why he was teaching at a school,”; the prosecutor said.

Keau's mother, Cheryl Ann Makilan, said she helped Keau get the job at the school. She is an educational assistant at McKinley. “;My son is workable,”; she said, adding that she did not raise her kids to do the wrong thing, and that Keau did the right thing by taking responsibility.

Defense attorney Lee Hayakawa asked for probation, saying that Keau is a “;kind-hearted”; and “;teachable”; person who regrets the sexual assault.

Keau looked toward the victim's family and apologized for his “;illegal, immoral and unethical actions.”;

After the hearing, Murphy said she was pleased with the sentence.

“;When a child goes to school, she should be able to feel safe,”; Murphy said. “;This child lived in terror for over a year.”;