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OXNARD, Calif. (KTLA) -- An Oxnard teacher who was fired after her past as a porn actress was discovered is appealing her dismissal.
Stacie Halas, a science teacher at Richard B. Haydock Intermediate School, was fired by the school board in April on the grounds that her role in pornography disrupted the classroom environment.
In court Monday, her attorney, Richard Schwab, argued before a panel of judges that Halas did not star in pornographic movies while teaching in any district.
In his opening statements, he said Halas acted in them during an eight-month period from 2005 to 2006 because of financial duress.
Nitasha Sawhney, one of two lawyers representing the school district, said Halas repeatedly lied to school administrators about her acting career at the same time students were viewing the explicit videos.
"This case is about whether the students of the Oxnard School District are required to incorporate into their learning environment the choice Ms. Halas made to be a porn star," Sawhney said.
The panel is expected to submit a decision on the case within 100 days after the close of the hearing.
The investigation began when students approached administrators at the school and told them they had seen a female teacher in a pornographic video.
Administrators tried to verify the students' claims, but couldn't because the school's computers have filters on them that prevent access to sites featuring pornographic material, Chancer said.
So administrators put out a memo to school staff, acknowledging the students' claims but saying they were only unverified rumor.
That's when some other teachers came forward and showed administrators the video on a cell phone, allowing them to tentatively confirm that the accused teacher appeared in the X-rated video.
Chancer showed the video to district attorneys and the accused teacher was then placed on leave by district officials, he said.
Haydock staffers also sent a letter home with students on March 6 explaining the situation to parents.
"It has been alleged that one of our teachers is depicted in at least one pornographic video and possibly others on the Internet," the letter read.
"These allegations do not involve any Oxnard School District students. The district has placed the teacher on administrative leave pending an investigation of the allegations. We are asking teachers to discourage the children from searching for and/or visiting these inappropriate sites. We ask that you be particularly vigilant over the next few days with respect to the Internet content being accessed by your child on his or her telephone or other Internet-ready devices."