A public nuisance charge against a teacher who urinated in a classroom will be dismissed in a year if he meets certain conditions.
The agreement to a conditional dismissal of the misdemeanor charge against Matthew Steven Davis, 58, was reached Thursday. His attorney, Kyle Humphrey, said Davis must return to court on April 14, 2011.
In the meantime, Davis can't be in the company of minors without a supervising adult present, must seek medical help and provide proof that he received it, can't teach in the next year and must complete 100 hours of community service, Humphrey said. The attorney said he is confident Davis will meet all the conditions.
"(Davis) is very pleased to be given this opportunity and just wants to get the medical help he needs," Humphrey said.
Supervising Deputy District Attorney Cynthia Norris said, given the facts, she believes it's appropriate to dismiss the charge if Davis fulfills his part of the deal.
Humphrey has said Davis suffers from early onset of dementia and his ability to function has deteriorated in the last seven or eight months. Davis spent three weeks in a coma after a 1996 crash that killed his wife.
Davis did not want to speak to the media, Humphrey said.
On March 22, Davis, a substitute teacher and former pastor, urinated in a cup behind his desk at Cesar Chavez High School in Delano. A few girls in the class were crying and scared, Delano police said at the time.
Davis said he drank too much Coca-Cola and had to use the restroom, but he didn't want to leave the students unattended, police said. He said he didn't think anyone could see him.
Delano police originally arrested Davis on suspicion of indecent exposure, lewd and lascivious acts with children under 14 and child cruelty. Bail was set at $650,000.
When the original felony charges weren't filed, Delano Police Chief Mark DeRosia told KGET Channel 17 that he was disappointed and that those charges were appropriate.
DeRosia could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Norris said the incident was unusual and there was a lot of concern about something like that happening in a classroom. She thinks, however, there may have been "a jump too far" and the facts weren't there to support charging Davis with those three felonies.
"It would be like charging someone with murder if they committed petty theft," Norris said.
Davis lives in Tennessee and was only in Kern County to earn some income, Norris said. He will be able to complete his community service in Tennessee.