Teacher's aide accused of sexual abuse pleads to lesser charge in Jefferson Parish

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A Kenner woman who had been accused of accused of grooming and sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy while working as a teacher's aide at his Westwego school, has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in the case, court records show.

Sophia Canales, 24, had been charged with sexual battery of a child under the age of 13 and indecent behavior with a child under 13.

The Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office on Monday dismissed the battery charge, and Canales pleaded guilty to an amended charge of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile, court records said.

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Artis Ulmer III, an attorney representing the victim's family in a civil lawsuit against Canales and the Jefferson Parish Public School System, said prosecutors didn't feel they could prove the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt. The victim's family is disappointed, he said, because there is evidence Canales had a sexual relationship with the boy.

“If this was vice versa, a male teacher and a little girl, things would be different," Ulmer said. "I feel the sexual assault of a little boy by a grown woman is seen as a badge of honor in our society. It’s not. It’s sick and sad and disgusting."

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Canales pleaded guilty under Article 894, a state law that allows people to admit guilt and later expunge the arrest if certain conditions are met, according to court records.

Judge Nancy Miller of the 24th Judicial District Court deferred Canales' sentence and ordered her to serve 12 months of active probation, court records said.

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