Highlights
- Chester C. Cox, 31, pleaded guilty to 15 sex crimes including child molestation and secretly recording students undressing.
- Cox taught at Dr. Daniel Bright Elementary School in Cottonwood for approximately seven years before his arrest in June 2026.
- Yavapai County Attorney Dennis McGrane used the sentencing to call on Arizona to allow the death penalty for child molesters.
- Cox is scheduled to be formally sentenced next month; the 50-year term carries no possibility of early release for good behavior.
Chester C. Cox, a former elementary school teacher in Cottonwood, pleaded guilty Tuesday to 15 sex crimes, including molesting a boy and secretly recording students as they changed clothes, and will serve 50 years in prison without the possibility of early release, the Yavapai County Attorney's Office announced.
Cox, 31, taught at Dr. Daniel Bright Elementary School in Cottonwood for approximately seven years before authorities arrested him in June 2026. The investigation began when a woman reported that Cox had molested her son when the boy was 11 or 12 years old. Authorities said the alleged abuse occurred at a home, not the school, and that the victim was not one of Cox's students. At the time, Cox was working as a youth coach.
A subsequent tip from a former student led investigators to examine whether Cox had hidden a camera at the school. Investigators found several images and videos on his cellphone of students undressing and using the bathroom, along with several recording devices in his car. The Arizona's Family report on the August 2026 charges noted that Cox had installed hidden cameras in his classroom and a connected bathroom, and that investigators found no evidence the footage was shared.
Cox pleaded guilty to sexual conduct with a minor under 15, child molestation, multiple counts of sexual exploitation of a minor under 15, and multiple counts of surreptitious photographing or videotaping.
Yavapai County Attorney Dennis McGrane called the crimes "shocking and despicable" and used the announcement to press for a change in state law. "All too frequently, we hear about teachers and other trusted members of society harming children for their selfish sexual desires,
Sources
Every factual claim in this article traces to one of the sources below. See how we work for the editorial process.
- AZ Family (3TV/CBS5) retrieved 27/10/2026 22:41
- AZ Family (3TV/CBS5) retrieved 27/10/2026 22:41
Authored by The Scottsdale Signal. Drafted by AI from primary-source material under our beat-specific editorial guides; reviewed by humans before publish under our five-gate process. Sources retrieved at 27/10/2026 22:41. Every claim traces to a source.
