Gustavus tennis camp counselor sentenced to jail, probation
(Le Center, MN) – A St. Peter tennis instructor who had sexual relations with a teen girl he met at a college camp has been sentenced to jail time and probation.
Kieran Dan Townsend, 21, was sentenced Monday in Le Sueur County Court. First Judicial District Court Judge Mark Vandelist sentenced Townsend to 60 days in jail and ten years of supervised probation through the Minnesota Department of Corrections. Townsend must report for jail on June 1, 2020.
As part of his probation conditions, Townsend is prohibited from having contact with minors under the age of 18 without approval from a sex offender therapist. He is not allowed to use the internet, and is required to deactivate all social media sites. Townsend must submit to a psychological sexual evaluation and attend a sex offender program.
Townsend will not be required to register as a sex offender.
In a plea deal signed in July, Townsend agreed to plead guilty to felony third-degree criminal sexual conduct. A felony fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct charge was dropped as part of the plea deal.
Townsend received a stay of adjudication, which means he wasn’t technically convicted of the crime, but any violation of his probation conditions will result in an automatic felony conviction.
In August 2018, a 15-year-old girl reported to police that she had “sexual contact” on at least two occasions with Townsend, who had been her tennis camp counselor. The victim told police Townsend was aware that she had very recently turned 14.
Click here to LIKE Southern Minnesota News on Facebook.
Click here to FOLLOW @SouthernMNnews on Twitter.
(Copyright © Southern Minnesota News. Alpha Media Mankato. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)