Amanda Leigh Quinonez, a 34-year-old former teacher and coach at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Riverside, California, sobbed in court on Monday as she was sentenced for her sexual relationship with a 14-year-old student. The victim's mother delivered an emotional account of the torment her son endured due to the abuse, which occurred nearly four years ago.
Quinonez pleaded guilty in March to two counts of sexual penetration with a foreign object, providing sexually explicit material to a minor, and lewd acts on a child. She expressed remorse through tears, admitting she failed as a teacher and hoping her own daughter would judge her by her future actions.
The victim's mother recounted the harrowing experience of discovering the abuse, describing how her son was initially silent when she inquired about him, eventually being found with a Sheriff's Deputy. Her son later admitted the relationship, stating Quinonez had told him he needed to protect her. The incident led to the student and his older brother quitting the baseball team and transferring to a different school due to ridicule from peers who had learned of the teacher's behavior.
Quinonez, who worked as a language arts teacher and coached water polo and swim, was arrested in April 2022. She had been freed on $50,000 bond. Her sentencing on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, will be preceded by a period in state prison for mental evaluation. She is scheduled to return to court on November 10 for her final sentencing.
