A former Delaware County teacher convicted last week on 41 sex-abuse felonies and sentenced to more than 100 years in prison has begun to serve his sentence.
Matthew Rausenberg, 40, formerly of Columbus, was in the Lorain Correctional Institute Tuesday afternoon after being transported there Monday morning.
The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction’s website lists Rausenberg’s prison term end date as Feb. 18, 2121.
Rausenberg was found guilty of 34 counts of gross sexual imposition, which are third-degree felonies; four counts of kidnapping, first-degree felonies; and three counts of pandering sexually oriented material involving a minor, which are second-degree felonies, by a Delaware County Common Pleas Court jury on Jan. 25 and sentenced to 106 years to life in prison on Jan. 28 by Judge David Gormley.
Gormley also credited Rausenberg for 318 days he had spent in the Delaware County Jail.
Rausenberg must also register as a Tier 3 sex offender.
Prosecutors said Rausenberg, a former teacher at the Olentangy School District’s Arrowhead Elementary School, would frequently place students on his lap under the guise of having them read to him and would rub their legs with his hands. Nine of Rausenberg’s former students testified during his trial last month that he would let them sit on his lap and touch their legs, and several victims testified that he touched their inner thighs or crotch.
A video was shown during the trial that depicted Rausenberg touching various parts of a student’s body behind his desk and showed her attempting to leave his grasp and saying “no.” Investigators said the video was the key piece of evidence in the case.
The trial began on Jan. 19 and, over the course of four days, prosecutors called 25 witnesses to testify. The defense called only two witnesses,
Rausenberg did not testify in his defense.
He resigned his teaching job after his March 2015 arrest.
Delaware County Prosecutor Carol O’Brien has speculated that there may be more victims who did not come forward during the investigation.
