Former Hanford teacher gets 1 month in jail for sexual assault

A former Hanford High School teacher was sentenced Thursday to a month in jail for sexually assaulting a teen girl.

Daryl Eugene Rachinski, 59, was given a 30-day term with 334 days suspended.

The plea deal, which he reached in February in Benton County Superior Court, requires the Richland man to register as a sex offender for 10 years. It also states that Rachinski no longer can work with young people.

Rachinski was charged June 20, 10 days after the alleged sexual abuse occurred and a day after he turned in his resignation to the Richland School District.

The school board approved his resignation at a special meeting the same day prosecutors filed the charge.

Rachinski was a foreign language teacher at Hanford. He had worked for the district since 1994.

Rachinski later apologized to the teen for sexually assaulting her and said he had never done that before, according to court documents. The victim said she was going to tell someone at school, so he went to Richland police on June 12 and reported it.

In talking with police, he allegedly admitted to the assault but said the victim provoked him to do it.

Rachinski was charged with third-degree rape, but pleaded guilty Feb. 28 to communication with a minor for immoral purposes.

Deputy Prosecutor Anita Petra wrote in court documents that the plea deal was appropriate given Rachinski's lack of criminal history and his low risk to reoffend. She also said the victim and her mother agreed with the deal.

Rachinski underwent a psychosexual evaluation, which concluded that even though he's a low risk, he still needs to be monitored.

The counselor felt that Rachinski could complete sex offender treatment within two years.

Petra wrote that Rachinski "admitted what he did was wrong and has been found to be amenable to treatment."

The victim and her mother also told Petra they did not want to pursue prosecution since they have left the Tri-Cities and have moved on with their lives.

As a part of Rachinski's sentence, he cannot have contact with anyone under 18 and is not allowed to enter a public or private park, playground, school or other area frequented by minors without prior approval from his community corrections officer.

He also must follow through on treatment, and agree to any home visits as part of his supervision.

He was ordered to have no contact with the teen victim for two years.

A review hearing is scheduled May 23.

If Rachinski does not comply with the conditions of his sentence, including treatment, prosecutors can ask the court to give him additional jail time up to a year.

This story was originally published March 22, 2013 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Former Hanford teacher gets 1 month in jail for sexual assault."