A former Marshalltown Community School District teacher received a 90-day jail sentence with all but 14 days suspended during a hearing held at the Max Building on Tuesday morning. Mark Edward Farris Esquivel, 27, was originally charged with sexual exploitation of a student by a school employee, a Class D felony, when he was arrested in June of 2021, but last month, he entered a plea of guilty to three counts of third degree harassment, each a simple misdemeanor. The defense asked that Esquivel’s entire sentence be suspended with a year of probation imposed and a $105 fine with a 15 percent criminal surcharge on each count plus court costs, while the prosecution countered that all but 14 days should be suspended.  The defense sighted Esquivel’s lack of criminal history, the nonviolent nature of the offense, the fact he surrendered his teaching license, and his service in the National Guard.  The State reiterated the request that all but 14 days of the sentence be suspended and agreed that Esquivel should be placed on supervised probation for one year.

Zach Tomesch, News Director KFJB