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LAYTON -- A teacher at Layton High School is under investigation for having an inappropriate relationship with a student. The teen's mother hopes the man is criminally charged.
The teacher, Joseph Everton, is a choral director at Layton High School. Last week, the Davis School District put Everton on paid administrative leave because the case was causing a disruption at the school.
The young woman's mother told KSL her daughter and Everton just got married. She said she was an involved parent and never saw this coming. She also said Joseph Everton should not be allowed to teach.
"I don't know why a 62-year-old wants to marry an 18-year-old," the mother said.
Two months after her graduation from Layton High School, this woman's daughter made a shocking announcement: She was engaged to her former teacher Joseph Everton, a man 44 years her senior.
"I just didn't think it would happen at Layton, and it wouldn't happen with my daughter," the mother said.
Now questions are swirling about when the romance started and if the girl was still a student at the time. Allegations of inappropriate behavior have sparked investigations by Layton police and the Davis School District.
District spokesman Chris Williams said, "At this point, we haven't necessarily found anything to say that he needs to be placed on unpaid leave."
The teen's mother suspected the relationship may have started several years ago. But she said her relationship with her daughter was rocky, and the teen wouldn't talk about Everton.
"I know they've been friends for the last three years, but I don't know why she wants to marry someone so old," she said.
The woman first became concerned on her daughter's graduation day. She said that's when Everton sent her daughter a text message saying they were equals, and no longer teacher and student. She said Everton gave her daughter piano lessons at his home. The two, she said, exchanged numerous e-mails and text messages.
"They would go boating, and they would do a few things. He'd take her out to dinner or something, and I said, 'That's considered a date', and she was denying it," the mother said. "I was very shocked, and I was really concerned what she was getting herself into."
Then, she said, on Sept. 25, the two eloped in Las Vegas.
"They left and didn't tell me until they were married," she said.
She thinks Everton manipulated her daughter and deceived everyone else.
"I know that he's been probably grooming her for quite some time, and I think he should be charged for something on that aspect," she said.
Layton police say their investigation could be complete by the end of the week. Their findings will determine if any charges will be filed.
Joseph Everton has a 30-year history with the school district. KSL went to his home, and his only statement was, "No Comment."
E-mail: syi@ksl.com
