Morris teacher accused of sexually abusing students pleads guilty

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — CORRECTION: Dallas Ewton pleaded guilty July 7, prior to his jury trial, which was set to begin July 11.

In light of the plea, Judge Timothy D. DeGiusti canceled the jury trial.

Ewton pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual abuse of a minor in Indian Country and one count of abusive sexual contact in Indian Country.

This is a developing story and FOX23 will update the story when he has been sentenced.

The jury trial for a former high school teacher at Morris Public School, who pleaded not guilty in 2021, began Monday morning.

Dallas Tyler Ewton is accused of sexually abusing now-former students of Morris Public Schools during school and at school events, according to an affidavit filed in July, 2021.

Ewton was charged in the federal Eastern District of Oklahoma, based in Muskogee, with aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse of a minor and abusive sexual contact of a minor.

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A former student of Ewton’s told federal agents in May 2021 that he sexually harassed and sexually assaulted her. The allegations say it started when the student was just 11 years old until she was 15, marking her 6th through 10th grade years.

The victim said Ewton forced her to perform sexual acts on him, raped her, kissed her and forced her to expose herself to him.

The incidents occurred in class, after class and during school programs and tutoring sessions, the affidavit alleges, and the victim said these incidents happened every day unless Ewton was not at school.

The document shows Ewton also threatened the victim’s life and the lives of her family if she were to tell anyone about the acts. She said he would use the premise that she was missing assignments or failing class to get her to come to his classroom so he could assault her, according to the affidavit.

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Other former students were interviewed, and one said Ewton had touched her inappropriately during class several times between 2019 and 2020, according to the affidavit. She said she later decided to take online classes to avoid having contact with him.

Superintendent Chris Karch released a statement after Ewton was arrested in 2021:

“One of the Morris School District’s top priorities is to provide a safe learning environment for its students. When the District was made aware of the arrest of an employee based on allegations of inappropriate sexual conduct, it immediately placed the employee on administrative leave.”

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