Former paraeducator pleads guilty in District Court

A former Fort Scott High School paraeducator has pleaded guilty to aggravated indecency with a child and promoting obscenity to minors.

Kimberly Cannon entered into the plea agreement before Bourbon County District Judge Mark Ward Monday morning. County Attorney Terri Johnson represented the state, and Pittsburg attorney Mark Fern represented Cannon.

Sentencing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Sept. 21, in Bourbon County District Court.

The charge of aggravated indecency with a child, a severity level 3 felony, carries a minimum of 55 months and a maximum of 247 months in the Kansas Department of Corrections, plus a fine not to exceed $300,000.

The misdemeanor offense -- involving sending inappropriate texts and photos -- carries up to a year in the Southeast Kansas Regional Correctional Center and a maximum fine of $2,500. The sentences will run consecutively.

The incidents involving victims under age 18 occurred in early October 2011. Cannon's last day with the school was Thursday, Oct. 6, 2011. She had worked for USD 234 since August 2002. Her $100,000 bond was revoked on Monday.