PHOENIX (CBS5) -
Robert Esparza used a computer as his weapon to get back at an administrator he said was out of line.
"My son said you took this iPod. And that's when he claimed he never took an iPod," Esparza said.
Esparza's 13-year-old son told him the assistant principal at his school took the device and wouldn't give it back. He claimed his son was harassed, and that the administrator made racial comments.
"You know, what's a father to do?" Esparza asked.
Probably not what Esparza did.
"It was an idea that my son and his friends came up with," he said.
Esparza created a fake profile for the assistant principal on a porn website. It included sexually explicit comments and photos.
Esparza admitted he knew he was posting false information.
"I did. Someone had to expose the assistant principal," Esparza said.
He said he isn't worried about the example he was setting. "Examples? Um. Actually, my son is 100 percent behind me," Esparza said.
"It's not about teaching. It's not about saying I'm a good or bad parent. It's about defending my son," Esparza said.
Esparza has already been convicted of computer tampering and identity theft. He faces up to 2 1/2 years behind bars. His lawyer is trying to make those charges go away.
Esparza admitted what he did was wrong, but said that his actions are protected under the First Amendment.
Esparza's lawyer said the assistant principal is considered a public figure and he said it's clear the profile was just poking fun at him, even though it was on a real website.
The lawyer claimed those two factors mean Esparza's protected by the First Amendment, no matter what kind of damage his words could have done.
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Robert Esparza
