BY Scott Miller | February 5, 2021
A former Gering Junior High School science teacher involved in an alleged sexting incident with a teenage girl has been sentenced to a year in jail.
District Court Judge Derek Weimer Thursday handed down the sentence for Zachary Boness on misdemeanor charges of Negligent Child Abuse and Disturbing the Peace, reduced in a plea deal last year. He was initially facing felony charges of: Attempted Possession of Child Pornography, Knowingly and Intentional Child Abuse and a misdemeanor of Debauching a Child.
The 32-year-old was arrested January last year following a Nebraska State Patrol investigation in which authorities say Boness anonymously contacted a 16-year-old student via Snapchat requesting a sexting relationship, but she was able to identify him as a teacher and he broke off the conversation after she said she was uncomfortable.