Teacher facing child sex charges ordered to return to NM

Attorney takes blame for man’s unauthorized trip to Thailand

A former Albuquerque teacher facing child sex charges was ordered Thursday to turn over his passport after taking a monthlong trip to Thailand.

Kenneth Jehle had been allowed to live in Michigan pending trial. But he was in court Thursday, and state District Judge Cindy Leos told Jehle he must retrieve his passport from Michigan and return to New Mexico by Saturday. He must remain in Bernalillo County until his trial, scheduled for late August.

Jehle’s attorney, Stephen Lane, took the blame for his client’s international travel. He said Jehle contacted him about his trip and asked whether he needed to cancel it. Lane told Jehle he would ask prosecutors, and told Jehle to hold off cancel-

ing his plans until Lane heard back. Lane said he was driving when he received the call and forgot to follow up with the state to seek approval.

“The issue is that Mr. Jehle didn’t willfully violate any conditions of release,” Lane said. “He did exactly what he’s supposed to do, which is consult with an attorney. The problem here is mine — this is my responsibility, and I dropped the ball.”

Leos said sanctions against Lane were appropriate and ordered him to pay a $400 fine.

Prosecutors asked that Jehle be held in custody until trial based on what they called a clear violation of his conditions of release. Leos told Jehle that if he fails to follow the court’s orders, he’ll be sent to the county jail.

“I want to make sure you understand that you’re given an opportunity based upon what Mr. Lane said … basically (that) this is all his fault,’ Leos said. “But if you don’t show up or you don’t follow these conditions of release, you’re going to go to MDC, you’re gonna sit there until we try these cases.”

Prosecutors argued that Jehle should be both jailed until trial and required to surrender his passport. In a motion filed last month, they said Jehle’s social media posts suggested he was in Thailand, which they said is often described as a “prime child sex tourist destination.” A Border Patrol agent testified Thursday that Jehle left the country in February and returned in March.

Jehle is accused of sex crimes involving a special needs student during his time teaching at Albuquerque Public Schools and a female relative. Jehle was removed from the classroom in 2013, and the family of the student has since received a $750,000 settlement in a civil lawsuit against APS that focused on the same allegations.