Fischbach verdict: guilty on two counts, not guilty on rest – The Lima News

WAPAKONETA — Former New Knoxville basketball coach Cole Fischbach was found guilty late Tuesday on two of the seven charges he was facing related to allegations of having an inappropriate relationship with a female student prior to his resignation last summer.Fischbach was convicted on two counts of disseminating material harmful to juveniles, each downgraded from fifth-degree felonies to a first-degree misdemeanor because the material was deemed harmful but not obscene.Fischbach was found not guilty on two counts of sexual imposition, tampering with evidence and two other counts of disseminating material harmful to juveniles after jurors deliberated for nearly five hours Tuesday.The verdict was reached in Auglaize County Common Pleas Court just before 10 p.m. Tuesday after two days of testimony.Fischbach was initially charged with four counts of disseminating material harmful to juveniles, two counts of sexual imposition and one count of tampering with evidence after the former coach was accused last June of kissing, groping and sending sexually explicit photos to a 14-year-old student and then reportedly deleting the evidence.The minor testified Monday that Fischbach sent anywhere from three to 30 sexually explicit images to her on Snapchat last June after the two began messaging daily near the end of…
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