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By Mark Morey

Yakima Herald-Republic, Wash. (MCT)

Jun. 11--Teacher Michele Taylor's husband testified Thursday that she was home with him and their young triplets on the night she is accused of having sex with a 16-year-old student.

Kevin Taylor told jurors that the red Ford F-150's specialized exhaust was loud and could have been heard from some distance away if the truck left or entered the driveway at the couple's Terrace Heights home.

''I was there and I didn't hear my pickup," Taylor testified in response to questions from defense attorney Ulvar Klein.

Michele Taylor, an East Valley High School physical education teacher, went on trial last week in Yakima County Superior Court over charges that she had sex with the older teen and sent inappropriate text messages to him and a 15-year-old in 2009. Both were her students. She remains on paid administrative leave from the district.

Her husband is also a physical education teacher in the East Valley School District.

He was the first defense witness Thursday morning after the state concluded its main case with testimony from the student who says he had sex with Taylor.

The student has testified that the encounter happened in the back seat of her husband's pickup behind the Yakima Kmart. He says he does not recall the date of the incident, which he first reported took place around February. He later agreed with a sheriff's detective that May was the more likely month. His phone records from May 9, 2009, are consistent with his account that he made a brief call to Taylor about 10 p.m. to say he had arrived at Kmart, then found several missed calls or messages on his cell phone from his girlfriend after they finished less than an hour later.

But the defense contends that the sex never happened.

Kevin Taylor testified that the couple was working in the yard on the morning of May 9, then went with their triplets to a relative's birthday in Moxee and a dinner at Michele Taylor's sister's house in the East Valley area.

They all came from home from the dinner between 8 and 8:30 p.m. Kevin Taylor said he spent time cleaning and packing the couple's Ford Expedition for a planned trip the next morning to a Western Washington golf course for a Mother's Day brunch, which he won as a door prize earlier in the year.

Taylor said he recalled his wife reading in their bedroom that night, as was her habit. About 11 p.m., he said, he went to bed.

Michele Taylor's father, Terry Leingang, testified that he also went to bed about the same time. The Rochester, Wash., man said he usually slept on the Taylors' couch when he was staying in town. He said he went to the family dinner, but arrived home shortly after the Taylor couple.

He said he slept on the couch, near a window, and also never heard the truck.

He said he did not recall if the Taylors woke him as they were leaving for the golf course brunch.

On cross-examination by deputy prosecutor Sam Chen, Leingang confirmed that he slept with the television turned down, as was his habit, and that he could sometimes be described as a heavy sleeper.

Neither Kevin Taylor, his father-in-law or Michele Taylor's sister could recall specifics about the television program, which they all said ended about 8 p.m.

During the older teen's final cross-examination, jurors heard the first testimony about an actual text message. Earlier testimony has focused on phone records showing only call or text times between Taylor's cell phone and the boys' phones. Most other messages were apparently deleted or overwritten by the time the younger teen alerted school officials of the allegation

The text was part of a June 11, 2009, exchange between the older teen and his girlfriend at the time, the day after he met with the sheriff's detective.

''You have to believe me. I would never lie about rape," according to the text.

The boy has said he made contradictory statements to his girlfriend and the detective about the sex with Taylor, now described as consensual, because he was trying to save his relationship with the girlfriend. He earlier testified that he never planned to disclose his relationship with Taylor to anyone.

Kevin Taylor said he was aware that his wife was regularly communicating with the two boys, either to help the younger boy with family issues or deal with school-related topics for the older boy.

''I was completely fine with it," he said.

''My relationship with Michele is fantastic," he added. "As teachers, we strive to take care of our students."

On cross-examination, Taylor said he attended annual training before school started in 2008 on school policy regarding contact with students. School administrators earlier testified the policy discourages contact outside of school.

But he said the training did not deal with texting. "We did not specifically go over that," he said.

Chen also referred to reports during the trial that Kevin Taylor glared at the two teens and another student witness as they were coming into the courtroom. He denied glaring at them and said he had no control over whether they felt intimidated. "I would say it was not a very friendly face," he said.

Kevin Taylor, Michele Taylor's older sister and two other friends testified for the defense about a suggestive photo that was sent from Michele Taylor's phone to the younger teen's phone in May 2009. The sister said she took the photo and intended to send it to her stepbrother and stepdad. Taylor's mother accidentally sent the picture to the boy when she tried to use the phone, according to Klein's opening statement.

Other defense testimony dealt with the Taylor family's schedule during the weekends of May 2009.

The testimony is apparently intended to support the defense position that Taylor did not send the photo and that she could not have invited either student over to the house for a weekend visit in spring 2009. The younger boy has testified that she invited him over at times when her husband was away, although he never went.

Kevin Taylor said they had discussed having the boy over for dinner, but it never happened.

Twice on Thursday, Judge Michael McCarthy warned audience members not to contact jurors. He said a juror reported that someone from the audience, which includes those close to both sides of the case, tried to shake hands with the juror on Wednesday. McCarthy said any future confirmed contact would result in arrest.

Defense witnesses, including several students expected to testify about rumors involving Taylor or the boys in 2009, are scheduled to take the stand this morning.

--Mark Morey can be reached at 509-577-7671 or mmorey@yakimaherald.com.