[simage=4773,200,y,left] A jury found David Bennett not guilty yesterday in Marion County District Court. Bennett had been charged with 3rd Degree Sexual Abuse after being accused of committing the act against a student at Melcher-Dallas High School, where he was teaching at the time.

DNA associated with the incident was a match to that of Bennett’s, but his lawyer Keith Rigg argued that the DNA either accidentally appeared on the victim or was placed there by the alleged victim. He also told the jury that the alleged victim’s version of the timeline did not make sense, and that she held a grudge against Bennett because she was failing his class and he wouldn’t let her date his son.

Marion County Attorney Ed Bull had argued that the DNA was a clear indication of Bennett’s guilt. He also provided evidence that Bennett had changed the victim’s grades immediately after the incident occurred as a means to bribe her.

Bennett was free on bond already. The bond and a no contact order have been released.