The Claremont Middle School teacher fired for stalking a student, Erin Mullen, was sentenced to 12 months in jail as part of a plea agreement reached this month.

The deal allows Mullen, 39, to walk away with a suspended sentence as she denies any inappropriate behavior with the boy at the center of the case. Her tenure in Claremont highlights a troubling pattern in a district rocked this year by the $5 million financial crisis brought on by mismanagement and lack of oversight.

Mullen pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of stalking her former student and was ordered to have no contact with the boy or his family. Nathan Lynch, Mullen’s lawyer, told the Valley News that his client simply wanted to help the boy.

“[Mullen is] a very nice woman who had good intentions of helping a trouble

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