A 44-year-old former Jacksonville music teacher who once faced two counts of lewd and lascivious molestation involving male students at two different schools has pleaded guilty to a far lesser charge, walking away with probation instead of the prison sentence he once risked. Gregory Gafford entered his plea on Thursday to transmission of material harmful to minors, closing out a case that stretched back years and crossed district lines.
As part of the Thursday plea, Judge Tatiana Salvador sentenced Gafford to five years of sex offender probation and credited him with 189 days of time served, according to The Florida Times-Union. Gafford had originally been charged with two counts of lewd and lascivious molestation of male students at two schools, charges that could have carried up to 15 years in prison before the plea agreement changed the lewd charge to a lesser offense.
How the Case Against Gafford Began
The investigation traces back to 2023, when Gafford was teaching at St. Matthew's Catholic School on Jacksonville's westside. Police were made aware of groping allegations there that year, as first reported by News4JAX, which said he was accused of groping a student during an after-school club. A student told investigators that Gafford called him to his desk in the music room, stroked his shoulder and moved his hand toward the student's privates, according to an arrest report; the student said the alleged incidents usually occurred on Mondays after school during recorder club, running from October until around Christmas.
The student said he reported the alleged conduct to the school's vice principal, per the arrest report. Other students later disclosed feeling uncomfortable around Gafford, describing him in the same report as “creepy,” and said he rubbed students' heads, shoulders and backs. Gafford has described the complaints against him as “bogus” and “not valid.”
A Second Allegation Surfaces From 2011
A former student at Normandy Village Elementary came forward as an adult in 2024, alleging that Gafford sexually assaulted him in his office at the school back in 2011. The Sheriff's Office said the male victim in that case reported it in 2024, more than a decade after the alleged abuse, according to reporting from Jax Today. Prosecutors ultimately opted not to pursue the Normandy Village Elementary case.
Jax Today's reporting also lays out Gafford's employment history across Northeast Florida schools. Duval County Public Schools said Gafford was hired in 2009 and resigned from the district in June 2016. The St. Johns County School District said he then worked at Ketterlinus Elementary School from Aug. 3, 2016, through June 11, 2021, before later landing at St. Matthew's Catholic School.
Diocese Response and School Notifications
The Diocese of St. Augustine said the Sheriff's Office notified St. Matthew's school officials in July 2023 that Gafford was under investigation and should not be permitted on school property. The diocese said Gafford was placed on administrative leave and resigned, with his last day on campus falling on July 13, 2023, per the same account.
Terms of the Probation
Gafford's five-year sentence of sex offender probation comes with a lengthy list of restrictions. His probation includes a curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., and he cannot live within 1,000 feet of a school, daycare or any place where children congregate. He is also barred from working or volunteering anywhere children regularly congregate, and must obtain prior approval to visit schools, daycares, parks and playgrounds.
Under the terms of his sentence, Gafford cannot have contact with children younger than 18 without prior court approval, with one exception carved out for his biological daughter. He must also undergo electronic monitoring, cannot view or possess pornography, and is required to pay for victim counseling.
Gafford pleaded guilty to transmission of material harmful to minors.
