(Butte County, CA) – In Butte County Court yesterday, former Gridley teacher, 46-year-old Michelle Solis entered a surprise plea of no contest, changing from her previous not guilty plea, to having sex with an 8th grade student.

Yesterday’s appearance was to have been a preliminary hearing, but the D.A. tells Action News, that last year as a teacher at Sycamore Jr. High, Solis admitted to friending an 8th grader on social media and messaging him “in the weeks leading up to graduation.” In addition, she sent him four explicit photos of herself, then had sex with him, in a locked classroom, on graduation day.

She was arrested after an investigation over several months by the Gridley Police Department beginning last November. She’s facing a maximum sentence of four years in state prison and must register as a sex offender.