Ex-teacher sentenced in molestation case

KINGMAN, Ariz. -- A former high school teacher accused of molesting his adopted daughter was sentenced Tuesday in Mohave County Superior Court to 20 years in prison.

Grant Decker, 47, of Littlefield, Ariz., had pleaded guilty to attempted child molestation and attempted continuous sexual assault of a child.

Prosecutor Victoria Stazio said the victim and her younger sister were Russian orphans adopted by Decker and his ex-wife. Stazio said the victim told authorities she had been in the United States only three months when Decker began touching her improperly at age 11.

The victim, now 14, told authorities that Decker had engaged in inappropriate behavior with her at least 25 times before her adoptive mother caught them in April 2009.

Defense attorney Robin Puchek argued that Decker had confessed and sought help through counseling. Stazio countered that Decker's cooperation was insincere because he wrote a letter to his ex-wife from jail, blaming his adopted daughter for what happened.