Editor’s note: This story contains graphic descriptions of crimes that some readers may find disturbing.
A former Evergreen Public Schools substitute teacher pleaded guilty Thursday to molesting a physically disabled female student at a school in March.
Mark Anthony Lugliani, 60, of Battle Ground, admitted in Clark County Superior Court to committing third-degree child molestation.
On March 29, Lugliani forced a female student into a classroom closet, where he inappropriately touched her and masturbated on her, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
The girl refused another sexual advance from Lugliani the following day, according to the affidavit. When Lugliani asked the victim to meet with him a couple months later, she reported the abuse to a school counselor, the affidavit said.
Lugliani was immediately removed from the substitute teacher roster when the abuse was reported, Evergreen Public Schools spokeswoman Gail Spolar previously told The Columbian. He had been a substitute teacher with the school district since January 2012 and taught at the district’s middle and high schools.
Before working in the Evergreen school district, Lugliani was a teacher in Battle Ground Public Schools. There, he demonstrated repeated inappropriate behavior, including an incident in which he grabbed a student by the collar and shouted at him, an investigation by The Columbian found.
Battle Ground removed him from the list of approved substitute teachers for calling female students “honey” and “sweetheart.” The district failed, however, to report the incidents to the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction until after his arrest.
Lugliani appeared out of custody Thursday but was taken into custody after the hearing.
His standard sentencing range for the child molestation conviction is six to 12 months. But, as part of his plea, Lugliani admitted to an aggravating factor — violating a position of trust. The aggravating factor allows for a sentence outside the standard range.
Lugliani may also be eligible for a special sex offender sentencing alternative, which would allow him to spend all or part of his sentence out of custody in a sexual deviancy treatment program.
A sentencing hearing was set for Feb. 22.
Reporter Katie Gillespie contributed to this report.
