BROOMFIELD — Travis Masse, the former Broomfield High School teacher and wrestling coach convicted of sexually assaulting a student, may spend the rest of his life in prison.
On May 3, a jury convicted Masse of two counts related to sexual contact with a 17-year-old girl who had been his student and a manager of the school wrestling team.
Broomfield District Court Judge Thomas Ensor, who called the case “a Greek tragedy,” today sentenced Masse to 10 years to life and 20 years parole on the first count, and six years and 20 years parole on the second count.
Masse was to be tried in October sexual contact with a second student. However, today he pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual contact-coercion of a child related to that case and was sentenced to two years in prison and six years parole.
All three sentences will be served concurrently.
As he read the sentence, Ensor said there were many positive aspects to Masse’s personality.
“But there was something predatory about this,” he said. “You found the weakest in the herd and you separated her out.”
Masse, 30, was convicted sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust, with a pattern of abuse, after jurors heard testimony Masse had sex with his then 17-year-old victim on three separate occasions. Jurors were told that Masse sent the girl more than 8,900 text messages from December 2008 to February 2009. Many were sexually graphic.
Masse began texting the girl while she was a ninth-grader. The text messaging continued after the girl began having oral sex with Masse, according to testimony.
The victim told jurors she and Masse had sex in his vehicle near Anthem Lake in Broomfield, and during wrestling team trips to Elizabeth and Southern California.
Prosecutors said Masse — a social studies teacher at the school — picked the girl for his sexual advances because he knew she was vulnerable. The girl wanted to be a wrestling team manager to be close to her father, who was an assistant coach.
Masse resigned from Broomfield High in February 2010. He led the Eagles to the Class 4A state wrestling championship in 2008-09 and was named the coach of the year for all five state classifications in 2009.
During trial testimony, Masse denied having sex with the girl. But he admitted to sending the text messages, saying they were an outlet due to the pressures of his job and being a new father.
Masse did not speak at his sentencing.
Prosecutors read a letter from Masse’s first victim. The second girl spoke in court today, telling Masse that she is “one of two girls out of god knows how many who put a stop to what you were doing.
“I pray for you,” the girl said. “I pray that you take every opportunity to repent and to accept God in your life.”
