David Leishman withdraws sexual touching sentence appeal

A former high school teacher who groomed and molested one of his students will stay in jail for at least eight months.

A former high school teacher who pleaded guilty to molesting one of his students has accepted his sentence after almost 17 months before the court.

David Leishman, 50, of Blaxland, officially withdrew an appeal on his 12-month jail sentence in the District Court before Judge Siobhan Herbert on Wednesday morning.

Judge Herbert had warned Leishman’s lawyer she was considering increasing the sentence on appeal during a brief hearing last month.

Leishman pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated sexually touching a person, and one count of assault with an act of indecency in December last year.

According to court documents, Leishman developed a close relationship with his victim at school and texted her several times.

David Leishman will serve at least nine months in jail after pleading guilty to sexual touching charges.

According to facts tendered to the court, Leishman kissed the girl for about 30 seconds in one incident in the staffroom, and groped her breasts and buttocks in two other incidents.

The girl later told her parents about the incidents, and Leishman was arrested.

Shortly after his arrest, another girl came forward about an incident involving a kiss on the lips in a school hall.

The second victim said she was visiting the school when she saw Leishman approach her.

She told police he said her name in a “soft, slow, sighing manner” before he grabbed her cheeks and kissed her on the lips.

David Leishman was teaching at Blaxland High School at the time of his offending.

Leishman’s first court appearance on the charges was in November, 2019, and his name was suppressed by the court for a significant amount of time.

He will be eligible for release from prison after a nine-month non-parole period later this year.