OXNARD, Calif. – A teacher who was fired after it was discovered that she’d performed in pornography is fighting to get her job back with Oxnard School District.

A panel of judges began appeal hearings Monday for Stacie Halas, 32, who taught eighth-grade science at Haydock Intermediate School, according to the Ventura County Star.

Nitasha Sawhney, one of the attorneys representing the school district, said Halas lied to officials repeatedly about being in explicit videos, even after students discovered them online.

“This case is about whether the students of the Oxnard School District are required to incorporate into their learning environment the choice Ms. Halas made to be a porn star,” Sawhney said.

Richard Schwab, the attorney representing Halas, said she did not star in pornographic movies while teaching in any district. Halas only took parts during an eight-month period from 2005 to 2006 because of financial problems after her boyfriend abandoned her, he said.

“Your job is not to judge what she was in her past but what she is today. And what she is today, the evidence will show, is a very fit and a very caring teacher,” Schwab said as his client shed tears.

In a closed session Monday, five students also gave testimony. More than a dozen witnesses are expected to give testimony in coming days.

Former assistant principal Wayne Saddler testified that he learned about the pornographic videos from a teacher, who had heard students talking about them. Saddler said at the start of a sex video, Halas talked about being a teacher and he felt her effectiveness in the classroom had been compromised.

After rumors of her performance surfaced, profanity was etched on Halas’ classroom window, a teacher testified.

Halas is currently on paid administrative leave.

from www.nbclosangeles.com – An Oxnard school teacher whose former job as a porn actress prompted her district to remove her from the classroom appeared in court on Monday to try to get her job back.

Oxnard school officials say they never knew Stacie Halas had appeared in pornographic videos until April.

“You lie to your boss, that’s grounds for dismissal,” said Oxnard School spokesman Tom DeLapp.

When Haydock Intermediate School officials finally confirmed that Halas had made pornographic videos under another name, she was placed on paid administrative leave. Then, the district began the process of terminating her employment.

Halas hired an attorney, Richard Schwab, who put the blame for the messy situation back on the school district.

“Prior employment is something you would normally look into,” Schwab said.

He also argued that although porn might not be a respected industry, it is a legal one. He says Halas did it because she needed the money, and now she’s trying to do something different.

“I think most of us have something in our backgrounds,” Schwab said outside the hearing room. “And I ask anybody here to cast the first stone.”

“What happened six years ago has not impacted her ability to be an effective teacher,” he added.

District officials now strongly disagree with the notion that Halas can be an effective teacher. They contend her other job will always be a distraction.

“The fact that she listed being a lifeguard and being at Subway sandwich but chose to eliminate the fact that she was in the porn industry is very telling,” DeLapp said.

The administrative panel is expected to take several days to make a decision.

*Watch the clip: www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Porn-Actress-Turned-Oxnard-Teacher-Tries-to-Save-Her-Job-175331021.html