Ex-Fillmore mayor faces new charges in Juab County

Former Fillmore mayor and Millard High School teacher Keith Lorraine Gillins is facing new charges in Juab County for alleged sexual involvement with an underage student.

Gillins, 61, has now been charged with rape and two counts of forcible sodomy, all first-degree felonies. The new charges came after the Millard County Sheriff's Office investigated allegations that Gillins had committed crimes in Juab County. Court documents state the charges stem from an alleged crime that occurred once around April 10 of this year.

Prosecutors say Gillins sent text messages to a 17-year-old Millard High student and invited her to meet him at a motel in Nephi. The student and Gillins made arrangements to meet and spent the night engaging in various sexual activities, the charges state.

Juab County Attorney Jared Eldridge said after charges were filed on July 15, 4th District Judge Donald Eyre set Gillins' bail at $10,000. Eyre also ordered that Gillins have no contact with the alleged victim or the victim's immediate family.

Gillins posted bail on July 17, but the 17-year-old said he continued to contact her, the charges state. During a hearing Monday, Eyre determined Gillins had violated the terms of his release. Court documents show the judge revoked his bail and ordered that Gillins be arrested. He turned himself in around 5:30 p.m. Monday.

Gillins will be held in the Millard County Jail, though he is being held on a Juab County warrant, at least until Aug. 4 when the court will hold another bail hearing.

Gillins is facing similar charges in Millard County. There, he was charged with four counts of rape, a first-degree felony, and seven counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony.

Those charges stem from an incident that alledgedly occurred in Millard County in November of 2008 involving a 17-year-old student. It is not known if it is the same student from the Juab County charges.

Gillins was a language arts teacher, boy's basketball coach and Sterling Scholars adviser at Millard High School. Gillins served for 12 years as the mayor of Fillmore in the late '80s and '90s.

e-mail: emorgan@desnews.com