No telling why teacher's sex charge reduced

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Excerpt:

'YAKIMA, Wash. -- An East Valley High School teacher has pleaded not guilty to sex charges involving a student; however, a charge of sexual misconduct has been mysteriously reduced from what prosecutors initially said they had filed.

Earlier this week, deputy prosecutor Sam Chen said he didn't know why the charges filed in Yakima County Superior Court were actually for second-degree sexual misconduct -- a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison.

In a phone message Monday, Chen blamed any perceived "double standard" on overblown media coverage.

"The difference is in the media, which seems to portray the sexual misconduct with female teachers as opposed to male teachers more," he said.

"It goes beyond sex cases. The criminal justice system, in my perception, is far more lenient to women accused of serious crimes than they are to men," Trejo said.

"Why do they do that? I think there's a perception that the woman is not a violent offender ... and there-fore is treated with gentle hands, with kid gloves."'