A Michigan man who once worked as a special education teacher is asking a judge for leniency ahead of his sentencing for sexually assaulting and exploiting a female student.

In a 10-page handwritten letter to the judge, obtained by MLive.com, Paul Masko said if he's sentenced to between 15 and 30 years in prison, as is possible, it would be a "de facto life sentence."

Masko, 55, a former Ravenna Public Schools special education teacher, told the judge in the letter he had a chance to help write "a redemption story" by extending compassion to the father, whose adult son died in a February snowboarding accident.

"Your Honor, I need a redemption story," Masko wrote. "Please allow me quality time to show I can be a productive citizen once again."

Masko was set to be sentenced on Wednesday, March 25.

“There is no excuse for my misconduct,” Masko wrote in his letter, before seemingly shifting at least some of the blame. "(The victim’s) attention, willingness, flirtiness, or consent are NOT acceptable reasons for my responses and actions. I was the established grownup, and I failed this test I had previously passed so often in my life.”

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He said he has come to realize how his crime impacted his life — by ending his marriage — and “the wreckage it has caused in my family’s lives, as well as the person involved and surrounding communities.”

He also said he's changed, and reoffending was not something he thinks possible.

In November, Masko pleaded guilty in federal court to a single charge of sexual exploitation of a minor. Three charges against him were dismissed as a result of a plea deal.

Prosecutors alleged Masko received sexually explicit images from the victim on three different days in September and October of 2024. He allegedly engaged the 16-year-old and in time, began sexually assaulting her. The rapes occurred over a matter of several months, investigators said.

Masko also awaits sentencing in late April in Muskegon County Circuit Court after he pleaded no contest to third-degree criminal sexual conduct. He is also supposed to stand trial in Ottawa County Circuit Court on four charges of third-degree criminal-sexual conduct (student).

“The record is replete with evidence that Masko and the victim had a sexual relationship that lasted months,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis Sanford wrote. “He repeatedly sexually exploited her and enticed her to engage in a sexual relationship with him.”

Masko, who taught for 15 years, had no previous criminal record and was considered a “valuable and contributing member of his community” prior to the criminal charges, his public defenders countered in a sentencing memorandum.

He was also a coach for some sports teams.

His lawyers said he "feels tremendous guilt that he spent the last year of his son’s life incarcerated.”

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Masko added in his letter to the judge that he was “deeply ashamed and regretful. … My misconduct was absolutely wrong and has led me to stand before you. While the arrest has been humiliating and my inevitable imprisonment frightening, your honor, it pales in comparison to the prison I’ll be living for the rest of my life facing what I’ve done and how this will forever affect my loved ones.”

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

If you know of a young person who is being exploited or is the victim of a crime, you are urged to report it to your local FBI field office by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI. Tips can also be left at tips.fbi.gov