JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — In a newly released recorded interview, Jacksonville Sheriff's Office detectives tell Douglas Anderson School of the Arts music teacher Jeffrey Clayton they'd secretly recorded his "salacious" conversation with a student the night before. They told Clayton they made the recording so after the student reported him for inappropriate conduct.
"She was sitting on a couch and as you got close to her, she had a dress on, you might have touched her thighs," a detective told Clayton while reviewing the complaint against him. "She said 'he got close to me, and he started kissing me on my face and my lips and touching me.'"
Clayton was arrested on campus in March and has since been charged with four counts related to lewd behavior with a student. He has pleaded not guilty. School records show the district investigated several earlier behavior complaints against Clayton during his two-decade tenure at DA.
According to the newly released recording, detectives were originally called to a Clay County home where the student lived, before the case was turned over to JSO, since the school is in Jacksonville.
Clayton told detectives he knew the victim as one of his students.
"(The victim) is a very effervescent girl who just is different. She's definitely a different kind of sort than I've had that I've taught," Clayton told detectives.
Detectives asked Clayton about any inappropriate advances he may have made. They noted his age, 65, and referred to the student as "a child." Some of Clayton's comments are redacted, but in the ones included, he is hesitant to share details.
The detective asks: "So, there wasn't any going up inside her skirt reaching inside of her breasts?"
Clayton answers: "No, no."
Clayton told detectives he has been employed at the school as a music teacher for more than 20 years.
"I enjoy working with students. I think there's a there's an encouragement factor to what we do. Confidence is runs really low, you know ... But every once a while if I feel comfortable, you know, I tend to be a person who has kids come to me, you know, they're crying about something like that. They want me to give me a hug. I've had people come in, you know, give me hugs. And I've given hugs before like hey, great that was really amazing," Clayton said.
The officer clarifies that hugs "in the right context" are acceptable, but notes "front to front hugs" are not.
Clayton responds, "Sometimes you find yourself in a situation where they don't let you do anything but that."
Throughout the interview, Clayton is guarded, admitting to being "protective, conservative" in his responses. He declined to call his wife despite several prompts from the officer, instead calling a relative and asking him to notify her about his arrest. The interview is heavily redacted, so it's not clear what Clayton said in response to some of the allegations presented. However at one point he says he felt manipulated.
Detective: 'Would you say she [the student] seems to be an honest person?"
Clayton: "No."
Detective: "Do you think she has a vengeance against you?
Clayton: "No."
Detective: "Do you think she tries to cause trouble would be protocol struggle for people that didn't deserve it?"
Clayton: "I don't know that I would characterize it that way."
Since 2006, the professional standards office has opened at least 10 investigations into Clayton's alleged inappropriate behavior or communication with students.
He resigned after two decades following his arrest.
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