MONTESANO, Wash. (AP) — The former Hoquiam choir teacher who was charged with sexual misconduct with a minor pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of coercion.
KXRO reports the plea last week in Grays Harbor County Superior Court means Matthew Hirschfelder avoids a trial and having to register as a sex offender.
He could face up to a year in jail when he is sentenced on Tuesday in Montesano.
The case began in 2006 when an 18-year-old choir member told police she had been involved in a sexual relationship with Hirschfelder who was 33 at the time.
