The Brief

An Orange County businessperson, who is among four people accused in a civil lawsuit filed by county officials accusing them of plundering public funds, played a role in the million-dollar home purchase last year by O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do’s then 22-year-old daughter, according to escrow and land deed records reviewed by LAist.

Federal agents searched Rhiannon Do’s home in unincorporated Tustin last month — as well as the businessperson’s home and a nearby house owned by Supervisor Do and his wife, O.C. Superior Court Judge Cheri Pham.

Those searches came a few days after the county filed a lawsuit alleging the businessperson, Thu Thao Thi Vu, conspired with the supervisor’s daughter Rhiannon Do and others to embezzle millions of taxpayer dollars meant to feed needy seniors.

Those public funds were directed by Supervisor Do to Viet America Society (VAS), a nonprofit that numerous public records show his daughter Rhiannon Do helped lead. LAist has uncovered more than $13 million directed by Supervisor Do to VAS.

The nonprofit’s attorney has denied the allegations. Rhiannon Do’s attorney, Dave Wiechert, told LAist Thursday that he was getting ready for a court appearance and would not have time to comment. VAS’ attorney, Mark Rosen, did not respond to a phone call and text message requesting comment.

Law enforcement officials taking materials from the home owned by Rhiannon Do, Aug. 22, 2024.

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Jason Armond

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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

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In the suit, the county alleges the nonprofit’s leaders “brazenly plundered” the meal funds to instead buy homes for themselves, including the one Rhiannon Do purchased in unincorporated Tustin. And the county alleges much of the money was routed through Vu’s company, Aloha Financial Investment, to “conceal their fraud and hide assets.”

LAist obtained and analyzed public records that showed most of the $3.2 million in meal money that the county paid VAS in 2021 and 2022 was routed to Perfume River, a restaurant in Westminster owned by Aloha.

Since early April, LAist has made multiple inquiries with county officials about that flow of meal money. County officials said they could not explain what the money was used for because they were waiting on long-overdue audits and financial records from VAS. In July, county officials made a formal demand for money to be returned and called the payments to Perfume River “questionable and unexplained.”

Vu’s connection to Rhiannon Do’s purchase of the $1.035 million home is not clear. In the official record of the home’s sale filed with the county, the county recorder is instructed to send a copy of the grant deed to Vu. Real estate experts consulted by LAist said people listed in those instructions typically are involved in the transaction in some way.

What the records show

Vu has not responded to multiple requests for comment from LAist. In April, Rhiannon Do told LAist that Vu’s only involvement in the sale was to refer the home to her after deciding not to buy it herself. Escrow records, recently obtained by LAist from the seller, and interviews with people involved in the sale, differ from Rhiannon Do’s account.

An amendment to the purchase agreement, signed by Rhiannon Do and Vu on July 3, 2023, adds Vu as a co-buyer of the home. That record notes that it was adding Vu as a buyer to the original agreement executed on June 22, 2023.

Vu is removed as a co-buyer in another amendment on July 11, 2023, signed by Rhiannon Do.

Then, on July 25, 2023, Vu’s home address in Fountain Valley is listed in the seller’s estimated closing statement as the address of the home buyer, Rhiannon Do.

Vu’s Fountain Valley home, which public records show VAS’ president Peter Pham has used as the address for his businesses, was among at least five locations connected to VAS leaders that were searched by federal agents on Aug. 22.

O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do (right) with Viet America Society founder Peter Pham (left) in a video posted by Do’s official YouTube account.

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Supervisor Andrew Do, screenshot via YouTube

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To purchase the Tustin house, Rhiannon Do took out a $621,000 mortgage, according to a public mortgage record called a deed of trust. The gap between that amount and the purchase price suggests her down payment totaled $414,000.

The mortgage was taken out solely in Rhiannon Do’s name, for 30 years at a fixed rate, according to the public mortgage document. The interest rate was not disclosed.

The escrow documents are not in publicly-accessible records. LAist obtained copies from the home’s seller, Valerie Kemp. She said she shared the documents after learning of LAist’s investigation and the county’s fraud allegations tied to the purchase of several homes, including the one she sold Rhiannon Do.

That first deposit for the purchase — about $31,000 — lists both Vu and Rhiannon Do as the buyers, while stating the funds were from Rhiannon Do. That’s a wire transfer to the escrow company documented in a receipt dated July 7, 2023.

Another link between Aloha and Rhiannon’s home purchase

Email records, which LAist obtained this month from the city of Santa Ana through a public records request, show another connection between Vu’s company and Rhiannon Do’s home purchase.

Those emails discuss a property Aloha purchased on 17th Street in Santa Ana last year. The county alleges in its lawsuit it was purchased using illegally diverted taxpayer money.

The emails show that at the same time the purchase of Rhiannon Do’s home was moving forward, her real estate agent was contacting Santa Ana city officials on behalf of Aloha, the company led by Vu. The agent, in the emails, described Vu and Peter Pham as the owners of the 17th Street property. Official property records show the company, Aloha, as the owner.

A vacant building purchased by Aloha Financial Investment on 17th Street in Santa Ana.

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Brian Feinzimer

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LAist

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Reached by phone a month ago, the agent — Phillip Vu Nguyen of HPT Realty & Finance — said he would look into LAist’s questions about Vu’s role in Rhiannon Do’s home purchase. He has not responded to multiple follow up calls and texts for comment.

The down payment and mortgage

Rhiannon Do is a third-year law student at UC Irvine. At the time that she purchased the home in late July 2023, her resume shows her interning that summer at a law firm and working as president of Warner Wellness Center, the mental health arm of VAS.

LAist researched the average interest rate at the time Rhiannon Do obtained the 30-year mortgage on the Tustin house. At that rate, the mortgage payment, property taxes and insurance would come out to about $5,000, according to a mortgage calculator and the tax rate for the property. A real estate expert said LAist used the correct approach to estimating the home’s monthly cost at that interest rate.

Her lender — Emet Mortgage — requires borrowers to earn about twice as much in monthly income as the monthly cost of the mortgage, property taxes and insurance, according to its website. That type of requirement is standard for American home loans, under federal rules that govern most U.S. mortgages.

Billing records obtained by LAist show that during the month Rhiannon Do bought the house, VAS charged the county for 173 hours of Rhiannon Do’s time on a mental health contract, which averages around 40 hours per week. That month, VAS paid her $4,615 before taxes, according to county records.

That accounts for less than half the earnings that appear to have been required by the income requirements listed on her lender’s website for that size mortgage at the time she obtained it.

Her work for VAS was the only job she cited to LAist when asked how she afforded the home, besides the summer internship.

Rhiannon Do has not responded to LAist’s follow-up questions asking how she qualified for the mortgage or afforded to purchase and maintain the monthly mortgage costs.

Details of Rhiannon Do’s response to LAist

On April 1, LAist sent Rhiannon Do an email asking a series of questions:

• Why was $400,000 in county meals money apparently routed through VAS to a mental health business she was an officer of?
• How did she qualify for the mortgage?
• Why was Vu’s name on the grant deed?
• And how much of the home purchase, if any, was financed by the taxpayer money her father sent VAS?

She did not answer those questions, and wrote back calling them part of a “false narrative.”

LAist asked again.

On April 4, she replied saying she didn’t know why Vu’s name was on the deed, but that Vu referred her to the home after deciding not to buy it.

“Ms. Vu found the house first. She dealt with the listing agent until she decided not to buy the house and referred it to me,” she wrote. “I don't know why Ms. Vu's name was included to receive a copy even though I was clearly listed as the sole buyer in the body of the Grant Deed, other than the fact that the Grant Deed contained many mistakes.”

She then gave examples of the other mistakes she referred to.

“For example, the Grant Deed misidentified the property as not being in the City of Tustin, and it listed Ms. Vu’s address as the address of the house I was purchasing where Ms. Vu did not and does not reside,” she wrote.

An LAist review found otherwise: The grant deed correctly noted the home is in an unincorporated area. That’s according to official county maps. And the deed did not state Vu’s address as the home Rhiannon Do was purchasing.

[Read all of Rhiannon’s email responses to LAist.]

What the seller and seller’s agent say about the transaction

Rhiannon Do's home in the Tustin area.

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Brian Feinzimer

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LAist

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The listing agent says Rhiannon’s account is not accurate.

“I never spoke with [Vu], and I never dealt with her,” said Michelle Vaughn, who represented the sellers in the transaction and told LAist she was the only listing agent.

Vaughn said at the time of the transaction, she had no idea Rhiannon Do was the daughter of Supervisor Do and Cheri Pham, a high-ranking O.C. Superior Court judge.

Valerie Kemp — along with her husband — sold the home to Rhiannon Do. Kemp also told LAist that at the time of the sale, she didn’t know at the time who Rhiannon Do’s parents were.

Kemp told LAist she and her husband had moved out of state before selling the home, and didn’t interact directly with the buyer.

Nothing during the sale process raised any concerns, Kemp added.

Kemp said she was shocked and angry when she learned of Orange County’s corruption allegations that now include the home.

“I appreciate whoever looked at this and saw it and said this needs to be looked into,” she said.

Real estate experts on the transaction 

Real estate expert Robert S. Griswold told LAist the home’s recorded mortgage and Rhiannon Do’s known income don’t add up.

“There’s plenty of sad stories about people paying 50 or 60% of their income for housing,” said Griswold, the co-author of Home Buying Kit for Dummies and Real Estate Investing for Dummies. “But not 112%. It doesn’t work.”

He and another real estate expert said the place Vu is listed on the grant deed — where there’s instructions to mail a copy to her and Rhiannon Do after it’s recorded — indicates some connection between people listed there and a property transaction.

What’s next? 

Rhiannon Do’s father, Supervisor Do, has faced increasing calls to resign from his elected position. That includes calls from two of his four colleagues on the Board of Supervisors and six of the seven city council members in Huntington Beach, the largest city in his district. He’s given no public indication he’s considering doing so.

He has stopped attending county supervisor meetings.

The empty seat of Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do who was not in attendance for the Aug. 27, 2024 Board of Supervisors meeting.

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Brian Feinzimer

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LAist

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His four fellow supervisors unanimously voted earlier this month to strip Supervisor Do of all his committee assignments, including to the high-profile governing board of the Orange County Transportation Authority.

This week, all four of his colleagues voted to publicly condemn Supervisor Do with a censure. It cites “reckless judgment and favoritism he has demonstrated in directing millions of dollars” to “organizations with no proven track record,” while not disclosing his family ties. California law at the time did not require disclosure when elected officials award taxpayer money to their adult children.

That will be changing. In response to LAist’s coverage of Supervisor Do’s awarding of funds, new conflict of interest laws were approved unanimously by the state Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The county’s civil fraud lawsuit against Rhiannon Do and other VAS leaders is in early stages, and was transferred to San Diego County Superior Court. A search of the court’s website does not return any responses to the complaint from defendants.

Meanwhile, federal authorities have frozen the bank accounts for VAS, Peter Pham and Perfume River, according to VAS’ attorney.

The investigating agencies — the FBI, the IRS, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office — have declined to discuss next steps or details of their investigation, with the federal prosecutors office citing a court-ordered seal on the case.

Catch up on the investigation

In November 2023, LAist began investigating how millions in public taxpayer dollars were spent. In total, LAist has uncovered public records showing more than $13 million in public money that was approved to a little-known nonprofit that records state was led on and off by Rhiannon Do. Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas. He did not publicly disclose his family ties.

Much of the known funding came from federal coronavirus relief money.

• Read the story that launched the investigation here.
• Since LAist started reporting, we’ve also uncovered the group was two years overdue in completing a required audit into whether the meal funds were spent appropriately.
• And LAist found the amount of taxpayer money directed to the nonprofit was much larger than initially known. It totals at least $13.5 million in county funding — tallied from government records obtained and published by LAist. 
• After our reporting, O.C. officials wrote demand letters to the nonprofit saying millions in funding were unaccounted for. They warned the nonprofit that it could be forced to repay the funds.
• And, LAist found the nonprofit missed a deadline set by county officials to provide proof about how funding for meals were spent.
• On Aug. 2, LAist reported O.C. officials were demanding the refund of more than $3 million in public funds awarded by Do to VAS and another nonprofit, Hand to Hand.
• Six days later, LAist reported Orange County officials had expanded demands for refunds of millions in tax dollars from the nonprofits and threatened legal action.
• On Aug. 15, LAist reported O.C. officials sued VAS and its key officers and associated businesses, including Rhiannon Do. The lawsuit alleges that county money was illegally used to purchase five homes and was converted into cash through ATM transactions. 
• Then, on Aug. 19, LAist reported O.C. officials had announced a second lawsuit against Hand to Hand and its CEO to recover millions of taxpayer dollars that were directed by Supervisor Do.
• LAist broke the news on Aug. 22 that federal agents were searching Rhiannon Do's home in Tustin. Later that day, Supervisor Do's home, and other properties, were also raided.

How to watchdog local government

One of the best things you can do to hold officials accountable is pay attention.

Your city council, board of supervisors, school board and more all hold public meetings that anybody can attend. These are times you can talk to your elected officials directly and hear about the policies they’re voting on that affect your community.

• Read tips on how to get involved.
• The next scheduled board meeting is Tuesday, Oct. 8. You can check out the O.C. Board of Supervisors full calendar here.
• Learn how to submit a public comment to the O.C. Board of Supervisors.

LAist Senior Reporter Ted Rohrlich contributed to this story.

Top photo caption and credit: Law enforcement searched the Tustin home of O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do's 23 year-old daughter Rhiannon Do, on Aug. 22. (Jason Armond Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

LAist reports on local issues for — and with — communities across Southern California, but chances are most readers have never spoken with a journalist before. Your stories and experiences power our reporting, so it’s important that people know what to expect when they speak with a reporter.

That’s what this guide is for.

Below are some tips from our newsroom on what to keep in mind when talking to a journalist.

Remember: You are the expert on your own life

Tell the story you want to tell about yourself.

Be honest. Truthfulness and facts are central to journalistic ethics.

Also know your worth. Reporters come to you for a reason. They may be intimidating because they have a mic or a camera, but you have a perspective they need. Media outlets also want to expand their audiences, and that includes you.

Common questions

How can I get a journalist’s attention?

Contact reporters by social media or send them a personal email — at LAist, contact information is available on our staff page. If you meet a reporter, get their business card. It will usually have a direct phone number to talk with them.

Will all my words be published?

Probably not. Journalists are often working with a limited word count or air time. They will likely use one short sound bite or quote from you. It’s also possible they will not use your interview at all. Reporters and their editors decide what will get published.

Can I see a copy of the story before it's published?

Probably not. It is against journalistic ethics to have sources review a story before it’s published. Imagine if a journalist were to do a piece about government corruption. You wouldn’t want the government agency to review the story and edit it. Editors review stories for accuracy.

When will the story be published?

It depends on the type of story. Some stories are short and may air on the radio or be published online the same day you talk to the reporter. Other times a reporter might work on a story for several weeks or months. It’s OK to follow up with the reporter who talked to you and ask when the story might be done and ask them to let you know where you can read or hear it.

Can I speak with a fact-checker?

You are welcome to ask reporters about their fact-checking process or how they make sure a story is accurate. Not all outlets have fact-checkers. If the story is an investigative story or a long-form or magazine format, designated fact-checkers are more common. At LAist, reporters and editors are responsible for verifying information.

What if I am asked about something that makes me feel uncomfortable?

Your story is your own and during an interview you have full control over what you say to a reporter. Answer questions in any way that makes you feel most comfortable, and you can always decline to answer a question.

What do I do if a reporter asks me about my immigration status?

You don't have to disclose your immigration status to a reporter. If it's directly relevant to the story, a trustworthy reporter will explain that and also tell you how they'd handle the information. You can decline to answer.

• More on how LAist handles this topic

How do I determine if the newsroom I'm speaking with has a specific point of view?

It's a great question and relates directly to media literacy — meaning how well you can spot misinformation, disinformation and bias. The reality is that we all have points of view. Here are some tools to check on where a publication falls across the political spectrum:

• FAIR's (Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting), which describes itself as a "progressive media watchdog group" has this media literacy guide.
• PEW Research Center, which describes itself as a nonprofit, nonpartisan nonadvocacy organization, has information on sources most popular with different political perspectives
• You should be able to find information on who funds the work on the site (corporations, individual owners, subscribers, members and so on).
• You can also check out this interactive chart tracking media outlets across the political spectrum (note that you may need a paid version to search smaller outlets). Ad Fontes Media, which describes itself as a "public benefit corporation" which they said means they are "a for-profit business with a stated public mission," has been publishing its analysis since 2018.

Is everything I say usable in a story?

You can come to an agreement with reporters ahead of the conversation about how your words can be used:

• “On the record”: This means that everything you say in your conversation with the journalist can be quoted, published and attributed back to you. By default, you should assume any exchange you have with a journalist is on the record unless you mutually agree otherwise. 
• “On background”: This means that you are sharing information with a journalist that can be referenced in a story, but is not directly attributed to you. 
• “Off the record”: This means that you are sharing information that is not for publication. People may share experiences or tips off the record if they want the journalist to be aware of the information but don’t want it mentioned in a story. Remember that “off the record” only counts if both you and the journalist agree to it. 

It's worth noting that different newsrooms may use these terms slightly differently. You should confirm with the reporter that you have as shared understanding of the meaning.

Do I need to pay to be in a news story? Can I get paid?

No and no. You will not pay or get paid to be in a news story because this is against journalistic ethics. Anyone who receives payment for a story could be swayed to bend the truth.

What if the reporter gets my story wrong?

If you feel that the reporter misrepresented your story, you can ask for a correction or an update to clarify a point. Reporters want to get the story right and they don't want to incorrect or misleading information to go unchecked. That said, corrections deal with information that is factually incorrect, so you should be ready to explain what was wrong and why. Under California law, you have 20 days to demand a correction and the publisher has to respond within a set period of time.

• More on California civil defamation claims and the definition of defamation.

How can I prepare for an interview?

Think about the main points you want to get across in your interview. What are the most critical things for the reporter to know? Some people like to organize their thoughts into three major points. If you are not used to telling your story, you may want to have a friend ask you some questions to practice. Depending on the story, a reporter may also ask if you have any pictures to share that they can use to help tell the story.

Get involved with LAist

Ask LAist reporters questions

You can reach out to LAist reporters through the contact information listed on their bios. All our editorial staff, including the teams reporting, editing and producing news, are listed here.

How else you can be a part of LAist's reporting

Aside from contacting journalists directly, you can share your story with LAist through short surveys and meeting us in person. Learn more here.

This guide was originally written by former LAist early childhood producer Stefanie Ritoper, with contributions from Mariana Dale. Cato Hernández and David Rodriguez also contributed to this guide. 

File this under things that could only happen in L.A.

Paradise Dynasty, the Singapore-based chain known for its signature eight-flavor xiao long bao, has teamed up with Burritos La Palma — the SoCal burrito institution whose birria de res recipe traces back over 45 years — to create a limited-edition birria soup dumpling. The Birria XLB will be available starting Monday (May 11) for a limited time at Paradise Dynasty locations.

I've eaten my weight in both soup dumplings and burritos, so naturally, I'm a fan of both.

Paradise Dynasty has been on a steady ascent as a major player in L.A.'s dumpling scene, with locations at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa and The Americana at Brand in Glendale.

Meanwhile, Burritos La Palma — known for its simple, savory burritos and finely crafted flour tortillas — has been capturing hearts and stomachs since Alberto Bañuelos opened the first eatery in L.A. in 2012. It’s since grown to several spots across L.A. and Orange County, earning a Michelin Bib Gourmand award in 2024 for its high-quality, Zacatecan-style handmade flour tortilla burritos at an affordable price.

How the collab came together

So what exactly is a birria soup dumpling? A delicate wrapper, lightly packed with tender birria de res — slow-braised beef stewed in chilies and spices — juicy, savory and gone in one bite.

It all began with a call from Paradise Dynasty, when Jason Kuo, district manager for Paradise Dynasty USA, reached out to Bañuelos, calling it, simply, a perfect match between the two dishes.

Kuo said the idea came straight from the community.

"When we started asking guests and people around us what flavor they would want to see in a soup dumpling, birria kept coming up again and again — it was very clear. If we're going to do birria, it has to be done right. Burritos La Palma was the first name that came to mind."

Bañuelos was "beyond thrilled" to have been approached.

"We come from a small town in Mexico, and to be able to elevate to the level of Paradise Dynasty and that culinary perfection, I can't even really put it into words," he said.

It took months of R&D to get the right consistency. Bañuelos said the process required dialing down the moisture and upping the spice potency and landed on serving a fresh red salsa with thin slivers of serrano peppers alongside — a riff on the black vinegar and pickled ginger traditionally served with soup dumplings.

The Birria XLB's juicy interior is part of what makes it work — the dish is served with a fresh, tomato-based salsa and slivers of serrano pepper in place of the traditional black vinegar and pickled ginger.

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Katrina Frederick

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Courtesy Paradise Dynasty

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How it tastes

I got a chance to try the dumplings ahead of the public launch and was struck by how well the combination worked. The juicy nature of birria is almost turbocharged in dumpling form, its savory, herbaceous flavors fully encapsulated in the thin skin, creating an exceptional texture in every bite. The dish hits even harder when dipped in the light tomato-based salsa — a rush of freshness that cuts through the richness, with a spike of heat from fresh serrano. (Feel free to skip the peppers if spice isn't your thing.)

But what's most impressive is how organic it all feels. This isn't fusion for fusion's sake — it's a natural meeting of two dishes that are deeply embedded in the Southern California diet, each playing to the other's strengths.

It feels like a logical meeting of the minds — birria and soup dumplings have both been part of L.A.'s culinary zeitgeist for the better part of a decade, and it makes sense that these worlds should collide.

When asked whether a collaboration like this could happen anywhere else, Bañuelos was quick: "It has to start in L.A. You just can't compete."

Where to try it

Nine Democratic House members from California are demanding information about how the Trump administration is treating unaccompanied migrant children who are pregnant and in federal custody. They’ve signed a letter, along with 39 other House Democrats, to Trump officials expressing their concern that the girls are not receiving adequate medical care or access to abortion.

The letter comes in the wake of an investigation by the California and Texas Newsrooms, public media collaboratives in those states. LAist is part of The California Newsroom.

The joint investigation found that the federal government is detaining pregnant migrant girls in a single group home in South Texas. Doctors and reproductive-health experts interviewed for the investigation said prenatal care is severely limited in that region.

The letter says the detention violates federal regulations because the children are “entitled to the full range of medical care, including reproductive health care.”

Rep. Gil Cisneros, who represents the central San Gabriel Valley, says he worries that pregnant migrants who are apprehended in California will be put at risk if they’re sent to a part of Texas that is short on obstetric care. Of particularly concern: High-risk pregnancies are common among minors.

“If they were in California," he said, "they would be able to have more choices of the type of health care that they would get when it comes to reproductive health care.”

Rep. Judy Chu, who represents the West San Gabriel Valley, wrote in a statement that “this administration is so intent on restricting abortion that it is using immigration detention as a tool to control these girls’ bodies.”

Mark Betancourt is a regular contributor to The California Newsroom. 

The U.S. Department of Education is investigating how the Los Angeles Unified School District responds to educators accused of sexual misconduct with students.

The department accuses the district of maintaining a policy that “automatically” reassigns teachers to other schools when they are accused of sexual misconduct with students and cites a 2024 agreement with the teachers union.

A Los Angeles Unified spokesperson wrote in a statement that it’s “not true” that staff being investigated for sexual misconduct are reassigned to other school sites.

“‘Reassignment’ typically means an employee is directed to remain at home and away from students and schools during an investigation,” the spokesperson wrote.

United Teachers Los Angeles called the DOE's accusations a “fundamental misunderstanding” of the district’s reassignment policy.

“[Employees] are not reassigned to another classroom or to any other setting where they would interact with students,” read a statement provided by the union. “This policy protects both students and staff and creates conditions for a thorough and appropriate investigation of allegations.”

What to expect from the federal investigation

The federal investigation, overseen by the department’s Office for Civil Rights, will assess whether the district’s policy violates Title IX, a law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs.

Kimberly Richey, the assistant secretary for civil rights, wrote in a statement that Title IX requires schools to address claims of sexual misconduct in a “timely manner.”

“It is unconscionable that the district would simply ignore Title IX’s procedural requirements to protect teachers who cause life-changing harm to their kids,” Richey wrote. “The Trump administration will always fight to uphold the law, protect the safety of all students and restore common sense to our schools.”

The Trump administration also has recently targeted LAUSD's desegregation policy and transgender student protections.

Last year, the office failed to resolve any cases related to sexual harassment, sexual violence or racial harassment, according to a report released by Sen. Bernie Sanders in late April. Sanders is the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Education Committee.

In March 2025, the Trump administration pushed to cut over half of OCR’s nearly 600 staff members, which contributed to a growing backlog of cases. Those employees were placed on administrative leave pending the result of legal challenges, and many were later brought back.

The Education Department has also withheld records related to civil rights investigations, prompting a lawsuit from investigative nonprofit newsroom ProPublica.

What does LAUSD’s policy say? 

LAUSD protocol related to employee misconduct says administrators must remove accused employees from their classroom or worksite whenever there is a risk to the safety of students or staff.

The 110-page protocol document also lists several other requirements for allegations related to sexual misconduct, including contacting law enforcement and the agencies that license teachers.

“Los Angeles Unified takes all allegations of sexual misconduct and harassment with the utmost seriousness,” a spokesperson wrote in a statement. “Our primary responsibility is to ensure the safety, dignity and well-being of every student and staff member in our care.” The statement also said the district follows Title IX procedures and continuously reviews its policies, training and reporting systems.

The UTLA settlement outlines several circumstances where an employee can be reassigned, including a law enforcement investigation of misconduct, sexual harassment of a student, behavior toward a student perceived to be motivated by a sexual interest and communicating with a student for non-school-related purposes.

School employees are “mandated reporters” who must, by law, notify local law enforcement or child welfare agencies of suspected child abuse or neglect. California Attorney General Rob Bonta reminded K-12 school district leaders in late April of their legal obligation to prevent sexual misconduct and protect students.

How prevalent is sexual misconduct in California schools?

There have been few comprehensive studies of sexual misconduct in schools. A 2004 report to the Department of Education estimated 1-in-10 students experiences sexual misconduct, ranging from inappropriate comments to physical abuse.

A new California law requires schools to train students and staff to recognize and report misconduct and write new policies on “appropriate behavior.” It also will create a new database of educators credibly accused of abuse.

More than 1,000 lawsuits related to sexual abuse that date to the 1940s have been filed against California school districts since the enactment of a 2019 law that gave victims a three-year window to sue.

LAUSD has authorized $750 million in bonds to pay for sexual misconduct settlements related to suits stemming from the law.