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LAUSD Sub Accused 3 Times of Sexual Misconduct Moves to New District Where He Allegedly Molests Student
George Hernandez
George Hernandez was a substitute teacher working for the Los Angeles Unified School District from 2003 to 2007. During his employment he was investigated three times for alleged sexual misconduct, but did not lose his credential and was never arrested. So what's a sub to do? He goes to work for the Inglewood Unified School District, and is now "on the lam" and wanted for allegedly sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl.The L.A. Times reports that Hernandez, 45, was seen in a videotape "molesting a second-grade girl at school." That video was found when an 11-year-old girl reported being subjected to indecent exposure by a man in a vehicle outside her school. A license plate check led authorities to Hernandez, and his residence was searched.
According to a police report, the following can be seen in the video:
Alone with her in his classroom, Hernandez can be seen reaching under her clothing and pulling her onto his lap. At one point, another student enters the room and Hernandez sternly orders her to leave.
157 homemade videos were found in that search of Hernandez's home; police say two dozen contain "inappropriate" material. In some, he appears to have set up hidden cameras in classrooms with the lenses pointed at the students' crotch level.
Charges were filed against Hernandez in conjunction with the most recent allegations, but he missed a September 2010 court date, and fled the country. Hernandez is considered a fugitive, and is thought to be living in Jalisco, Mexico.
So how did Hernandez remain employed with the LAUSD, and then go to work for the IUSD without issue?
"For its part, the Inglewood school district violated its own procedures by not fully vetting Hernandez's background before hiring him," notes the Times.
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Hernandez first came under scrutiny in the LAUSD in 2004 when he "was accused of touching himself while reading to a student at Figueroa Elementary School in South Los Angeles." No charges, no arrest.
Two years later, "three girls at 68th Street Elementary School, also in South L.A., reported that [Hernandez] patted or rubbed their backs, shoulders and buttocks in a way that made them uncomfortable." Again, no charges, no arrest.
"In 2007, the L.A. County Sheriff's Department investigated an allegation at Russell Elementary School in Florence-Firestone that Hernandez had touched a girl's genitals on multiple occasions," continues the Times. Still, prosecutors did not elect to take on the case. No charges, no arrest.
Hernandez quit the LAUSD in September, 2007. A few weeks later, he was on the sub roster at the IUSD.
The LAUSD was not legally obligated to report the first two incidents, however, when Hernandez quit in 2007, "he was under a cloud of suspicion — circumstances that legal experts said should have compelled the district to notify the [state credentialing] commission."
"Inglewood Supt. Gary McHenry, school board President Johnny Young and a lawyer representing the district," would not speak to the Times about the case.
LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy said this morning he "ha[sn't] the slightest idea" why Hernandez was not fully investigated while he worked for the district, reports City News Service.
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