Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Mark Gundrum sentenced a former Waukesha student teacher to eight years in prison for the sexual assault of a girl who was a student at Central Middle School, which is where the man was a student teacher.

Bryan F. Wendt, 27, is to have no contact with the girl, any minor victims and is required to register as a sex offender. He will spend seven years on extended supervision and is not eligible for early release, Gundrum said.

Wendt was not the girl's direct teacher and the sexual contact occurred between Aug. 14, 2009, and May 14, 2010, when the girl was 14 and 15. The contact occurred after the girl and Wendt left the school.

Gundrum said during an emotional sentencing hearing that had the court room packed with the girl's family and Wendt's family that he struggled with coming up with the exact number of years for incarceration.

"There is no right, no wrong, it just has to be make some sense based on all of these considerations," Gundrum said about the length of the sentence.

Gundrum said the time would allow the girl and Wendt to move on, and added he did not know if the girl was still "starry-eyed and infatuated."

Wendt was arrested after the girl's friend contacted police May 19 about concerns over Wendt's relationship with the girl. The girl initially denied the sexual contact, then admitted to having a sexual relationship with Wendt, according to the criminal complaint.

Wednt told investigators their physical relationship began in the summer 2009. He told police he knew she was 15 but said he loved her, according to the criminal complaint.

A bail jumping incident was dropped in exchange for his plea to the felony sexual assault charge after the girl and Wendt arranged to meet through an Internet social networking site.

A state pre-sentence investigation recommended that Wendt receive 10 years in prison, which Wednt's defense attorney, Paul Bucher, said did not match similar sentences that have been given for similar behavior. In one case, Bucher said, the suspect received probation. Bucher did note, though, that he was not saying prison time was inappropriate.

"You could knock me off the chair with a feather," said Bucher about his reaction to the pre-sentence investigation report's sentencing recommendation.

Wendt has been remorseful for his actions and cooperative the authorities, Bucher said during the sentencing. Bucher had advised him prior to the sentencing that he should not speak with the girl's family.

The girl's family was present in the courtroom, wearing pink ribbons to show their support. The girl's father spoke to Gundrum and forcefully shared what their family has been going through since learning their daughter was involved in a sexual relationship with the teacher.

Their daughter respected authority, including teachers and police officers, and she was the "perfect victim, the detective told me, the perfect victim," the father said.

"We are sick to our stomachs," said the father, who is not being identified to protect the family. "... He shattered our belief system, our faith in the school system."

Assistant District Attorney Lloyd Carter recommended prison time but would not specify the length of prison the prosecution was requesting.

"Nobody walks away from this situation happy," Carter said.