Former dance teacher found guilty of sexually assaulting two teens
By Steven Kreytak
AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Published: 9:38 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012
A Travis County jury found former Austin hip-hop dance instructor Stacey Aldridge guilty Thursday of sexually assaulting two teenagers one a former student after a night out in 2010.
Aldridge, 44, was convicted of two counts of sexual assault and acquitted of one count and faces up to 20 years in prison for each conviction. The sentencing phase in state District Judge Mike Lynch's court continues today .
"The defendant befriended, he manipulated, he groomed and then he incapacitated these teenagers, and then he assaulted them," prosecutor Mark Pryor said during closing arguments.
Defense lawyer David Frank argued that the testimony of the two teenagers — and a third woman who also testified she was sexually assaulted by Aldridge — was unreliable and fraught with lies. He also noted that the women did not disclose the alleged assaults to authorities for months.
Read the entire article HERE.
