An ex-Uintah High School teacher who was terminated in 2016 was
arrested on Wednesday after new information was provided to the Uintah County
Sheriff’s Office. 33-year-old Rodd Adam Repsher was booked into Uintah County
Jail for investigation of 6 counts of unlawful sexual activity with a 16 or
17-year-old. According to the Uintah County Sheriff’s Office, sheriff’s
detective Jason Turnbow, the high school’s resource officer, was informed on
October 11th, 2016 that another teacher had found Repsher alone in his
classroom pressed up against a 16-year-old student. The teacher told the
detective that Repsher admitted later that day that he had feelings for the
teen, that they had plans to go away together after she graduated, and that he
had kissed the teen. The Uintah School District put Repsher on leave the same
day. He never returned to his classroom and his employment was terminated. The
school district also reported Repsher’s conduct to the Utah Professional
Practices Advisory Committee. During the investigation, the victim was
interviewed by law enforcement but did not make any disclosures. No criminal
charges were filed based on the information available at that time. In July
2019, the case was reopened when one of the victim’s classmates contacted
detective Turnbow and shared specifics of what the victim had told her about
her relationship with Repsher and what she had personally witnessed when the
two teens went to Repsher’s house together. The classmate also gave Turnbow
information that during the school day, Repsher would kiss girls on the cheek
and slap them on the buttocks in his classroom. “After receiving this new
information,” shares the Sheriff’s Office, “Turnbow contacted the victim, who
is now an adult. The woman said she wanted to talk and Turnbow arranged to have
her interviewed by an officer in the state where she lives now. During the
interview, which took place in mid-September, the woman disclosed that she and
Repsher engaged in sexual activity multiple times when she was 16 and he was a
teacher at the high school. The encounters happened at the school, at Repsher’s
home and at a local business where Repsher also worked, she said.” The
investigation is ongoing due to allegations that there were multiple victims.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at
435-789-2511.
