Former Garfield County teacher arrested | Western Colorado

A former substitute teacher who taught in the Garfield Re-2 school district was recently arrested for child abuse.

According to a letter from the school district, Martin Spritzer was charged with two counts of sexual abuse of a child in a position of trust/victim (a felony) and two counts of unlawful sexual contact (a misdemeanor).

Spritzer was hired by the Garfield Re-2 School District as a substitute teacher on August 31, 2022. During this time, he worked at Rifle Middle School and Rifle High School.

On May 2, 2024, the school district received allegations of inappropriate behavior by Spritzer, after which an investigation was initiated, parents were notified, and the allegations were reported to the appropriate authorities, the letter said.

Spritzer never returned to the school district’s classroom after May 2, 2024, and is no longer active as a substitute teacher there, the letter states.