More students are coming forward to claim that they have been victimized by former teacher Mark Berndt after his arrest on Monday, reports the Los Angeles Times. Their willingness to come forward so quickly after the news broke casts an even darker shadow on the Los Angeles School District's decision to keep school parents out of the loop when Berndt was dismissed in January 2011.

Los Angeles Superintendent John Deasy is now investigating students’ claims as more school officials wonder how Berndt could have carried on undetected for all those years.

On Monday, Berndt was arrested on allegations that he bound and gagged students at Miramonte Elementary School, placed live cockroaches on their faces and fed them his own semen on spoons and in cookies.

His habit of photographing what the children described as a "game" is what aroused the suspicions of a photo technician at a Redondo Beach CVS, who turned the pictures over to Redondo Beach police in the fall of 2010. By December, the case was being investigated by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, and by January 2011, Mark Berndt was out of the classroom.

Deasy insists that he barred Berndt from the classroom as soon as he heard of the investigation against him. But for the parents at Miramonte Elementary school, it simply wasn't enough. A forum between parents, school administrators and investigators erupted into anger when Deasy said that the district handled Berndt's case according to police procedure.

Bond was set at $23 million Wednesday for a Los Angeles elementary school teacher, Mark Berndt, 61, who allegedly took bondage photos of more than two dozen students in his classroom -- $1 million for each of the 23 counts he faces of lewd acts on a child.

The 400 photographs collected by investigators include some showing suspected semen-filled spoons at the children's mouths, a sheriff's investigator said.

The probe started when a film processor gave investigators "over 40 photographs depicting children in a school classroom, with their eyes blindfolded and mouths covered with tape," a Los Angeles County Sheriff's statement said.

"Investigators learned that some of the photos depicted suspect Mark Berndt with his arm around the children, or with his hand over their mouths," it said. Other photos showed "children with large live Madagascar-type cockroaches on their faces and mouths."

Investigators, who interviewed more than 80 current and former students and school employees, identified 23 boys and girls then between the ages of 7 and 10 years old as alleged victims in crimes that are believed to have been committed between 2005 and 2010, the statement said.

About 10 children seen in the more than 400 images have not yet been identified, they said. The investigation began more than a year ago, officials said. "Early in the investigation, Special Victims Bureau detectives recovered a blue plastic spoon and an empty container from the trash within the suspect's classroom," the sheriff's statement said. "The recovered items tested positive for semen." The arrest came soon after lab testing matched Berndt's DNA with semen found on the spoon, Scott said.

Berndt was a teaching assistant in the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1976 and 1977, and he began teaching at Miramonte Elementary School in 1979.

Berndt’s next court appearance was set for February 21. He could face life in prison if convicted.

An Edmonton-area man has pleaded guilty to more than a decade of sexual abuse of minors, including his son and daughter.

The 41-year-old, who cannot be named to protect the identity of his victims, entered guilty pleas to 27 of the 40 charges against him, including charges of sexual touching, child pornography, unlawful confinement, incest and bestiality.

The man’s victims included his son, his daughter, the daughter of a girlfriend and two daughters of a fiancee. Four of five victims were minors at the time of the abuse. The crimes stretched from 1999 until 2010, according to an agreed statement of facts heard by the court.

The man’s daughter told police of sexual abuse that started when she was six years old, though she didn’t recognize it as abuse until she was 11. When she was 11, her father ordered her and her 10- year-old brother to have sex. Her father had intercourse with her. There were numerous instances of abuse in the following years.

The siblings were afraid to tell anyone of their fathers’ crimes and both attempted suicide as a direct result of the abuse.

He is scheduled to face trial on March 12.

Closing arguments were given today in the civil trial against a Miami day care center where the alleged sex abuse of a 5-year-old girl happened in 2008.

The family of the alleged victim is seeking $25 million claiming Discover Day Care Inc. was negligent in not having adults supervise children at the center at all times.

"If someone says to you, that's too much money for one person, you say that's too much pain for a 5-year old," said attorney Jeff Herman.

"She's being raped and she doesn't even know what sex is," Herman added.

During the trial, the alleged victim testified that the teacher told her class that a 13-year-old boy, her son, was in charge during nap time while she went out to lunch. During that time she said the boy sexually abused her.

The defense says the incident never happened, and the alleged abuser, now a 17-year-old, flatly denied doing anything inappropriate with the girl.

"Did anyone at the school ever see her traumatized, crying, complaining, acting out? No," said defense lawyer Don Hardeman.

The boy pleaded no-contest to the sexual abuse charges in the criminal case and was sentenced to counseling, but the jury was not told that information.

Three of the boy’s therapist did testify that he admitted to his behavior as part of his counseling. “He admits to touching her vagina,” said one of his therapists.

At one point in the trial the teacher testified that that she had written a note claiming the girl had told her she had asked boy to touch her private parts. But attorneys for victim produced attendance records showing that the girl was absent on the day that the teacher alleges that conversation took place.

“You did not speak to (the victim) on June 20 did you?” the lawyer asked.

“I don’t remember,” the teacher said.

The trial of a former deputy head teacher who faced historical child abuse charges, ground to a halt today as the jury could not agree on a verdict.

David Griffiths, 50, of Thistlecroft Gardens in Stanmore, has been on trial at Wood Green Crown Court for eight counts of indecency with a child and one count of serious sexual assault. He has denied the charges throughout.

Today the jury could not agree on a verdict, and so the case has come to a standstill. The case has been adjourned until January 20. Griffiths also faced an additional charge of indecency with a child, but was found not guilty by the jury of this allegation at a hearing on Friday January 6.

Griffiths worked at several schools during his career which began in September 1987, including Broadfields Primary School in Barnet, Edgware Junior School, Frith Manor Primary School, also in Barnet, and Weald Junior School in Harrow.

The offences were alleged to have happened between 1991 and 1993 in more than one location, including a school, which cannot be named, and the Welsh Harp Boating Lake.

Griffiths, who is married, was a long running volunteer for Greater London and Middlesex West Scouts, having been rewarded for more than 30 years service including a role as a district commissioner.

He also had a voluntary role in child protection at a local church, as well as assisting with a range of other projects at the church.

Marcos Cantu, a former math teacher and high school wrestling coach, has been charged with one count of sexual abuse and one count of attempted child molestation. He is to go to trial this month.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office accuses the 39-year-old teacher in Surprise of molesting a young girl. Sheriff’s deputies arrested Cantu last January. Cantu worked for four years at Valley Vista High School.

A news release from the Sheriff’s Office said Cantu fondled the victim while he was driving her home from her school.

Cantu previously worked as a teacher at Peoria and Sunrise Mountain high schools, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

An Alabama school teacher was jailed on charges of sexually abusing a fourth-grade female student, and police said Thursday the man told them he molested more than 20 other girls over his 25-year career.

Alabaster police said Daniel Montague Acker Jr., 49, was charged with three counts of sexual abuse, and additional charges were possible. "This is not a one-time event," said Deputy Chief Curtis Rigney. "This happened over a period of 25 years."

Acker taught fourth grade at three schools and drove buses in the Shelby County school system from 1985 until he retired in 2009. He was investigated on similar allegations in 1992, but grand jurors did not return an indictment, said Rigney.

A girl who is now 12 or 13 came forward within the last week claiming Acker molested her around 2009, when he was a teacher at Thompson Intermediate School, Rigney said. He wouldn't say what drove the girl to go to police.

At least one instance of alleged abuse occurred in a classroom in front of other students, Rigney said, but it wasn't clear whether the children saw anything or realized what had happened.

Acker remained on the school payroll as a substitute bus driver until this week, Rigney said. Acker's father, Dan M. Acker, is a longtime commissioner in Shelby County, just south of Birmingham, but Rigney said there was no indication his father's position helped the teacher avoid charges earlier.

Shelby County schools spokeswoman Cindy Warner said Acker was placed on leave while child abuse allegations were investigated in October 1992, and the county school board voted against firing him in February 1993 after grand jurors did not indict him. She said Acker was reinstated as a fourth-grade teacher at Creek View Elementary, where he worked before moving to Thompson Intermediate.

In a statement, Superintendent Randy Fuller said the district was cooperating with police and would no longer use Acker as a substitute bus driver or in any other capacity.

Confronted by police, Acker admitted molesting the girl who went to officers. He also told investigators he had abused more than 20 other girls but did not name any alleged victims, Rigney said. Acker is no longer cooperating with investigators, he said.

Investigators believe most if not all of the girls were in Acker's classes, Rigney said. But police are trying to see if some of the girls were students in other teachers' classrooms.

Acker's arrest stunned residents in the Birmingham suburb of 28,000, where he was well-known for his long teaching career.

The Waterville teacher accused of sexually abusing a girl under the age of 11 during the course of several years is now headed to trial for the accused crimes. David Lemery was in Oneida County Court in Utica on Thursday and his attorney said they do not plan on accepting a guilty plea in this case. At Lemery's previous court appearance, it was stated that Lemery and his attorney would return December 22 to decide whether or not to pursue a psychiatric defense. However, nothing of that was mentioned at the December 22 appearance. Lemery is a Physical Education teacher at Waterville Central School and has been on paid administrative leave since first being charged.

Lemery has been charged with two counts of first-degree sexual conduct against a child, and two counts of the same charge in the second degree. The charge states that the offense had to have happened twice over the duration of 3 months. In December, Lemery's attorney waived a hearing to suppress certain statements Lemery made to authorities, but reserve the right to discuss their relevance or whether they might be prejudiced. Over the summer, the Oneida County District Attorney's office extended a plea offer to Lemery, but he rejected it. The details of that offer have not been disclosed at this time. Lemery remains out of custody on $15,000 cash bail or bond, and the judge set a trial date of March 5.

Convicted pedophile Ian Appleton, a retired accountant and school teacher, has won his appeal against a five-year jail sentence for sexually abusing an eight-year-old boy three years ago.

A full bench of the Western Cape High Court set aside the sentence on Tuesday, and ordered that he instead be sentenced to correctional supervision involving a short period of imprisonment, and that he then be released into house arrest.

Judges Daniel Dlodlo and Vincent Saldanha referred the case back to the Paarl Regional Court, for magistrate Norma Smile to decide the period of imprisonment, and the duration of Appleton's house arrest.

The sentence is likely to outrage anti-child-abuse pressure groups who attended Appleton's trial and appeal proceedings.

Appleton, 74, who performed oral sex on the boy in 2008, was convicted last month of rape under the new Children's Act.

At his trial, it emerged that Appleton had developed a long-standing close friendship with the boy's parents, which gave him unlimited access to the boy.

The judges said the magistrate had considered correctional supervision inappropriate, due to the seriousness of the offence.

They said Appleton was currently receiving rehabilitative therapy for pedophilia, and had undertaken to continue with the treatment at his own expense.

This would ensure Appleton was properly managed, monitored and rehabilitated, to enable him to assume accountability and responsibility for his condition, the judges said.

They said State advocate Mornay Julius, in opposing the appeal, had referred to the scourge of sexual abuse of children, and the impunity with which it happens “almost on a daily basis”.

The judges said correctional supervision should not be regarded as a “light sentence”, as it served the specific purpose of rehabilitation.

If the offender failed to strictly comply with the restrictive conditions applicable to correctional supervision, the offender would be brought back to court to be sentenced afresh.

An Indiana teacher is facing six felony charges after allegedly having relationships with three female students, two of which were enrolled in special education classes.

Samuel Fies, 33, was arrested Tuesday and charged with multiple counts of sexual misconduct with a minor, child molestation, criminal confinement, child solicitation and attempted child seduction, the Associated Press reports. Fies allegedly developed a relationship with a female student at Highland High School, where he was most recently employed as a teacher, in 2009, when the girl was in seventh grade and under age 14.

According to the affidavit, Fies made the girl sit at the front of his seventh-grade social studies classroom and often found excuses to rub up against her, the Indiana Post-Tribune reports. Fies is accused of molesting her on at least two occasions, one of which occurred while she was locked in an athletic office. Fies served as a coach of the track and cross country team before he was fired in late November on the grounds of misconduct.

Fies reportedly contacted a second student, 13, through a MySpace account and text messages, asking her to do sexually explicit things and send him photos, the Northwest Indiana Times reports. The student told police after a phone conversation that the man she met online sounded like her social studies teacher.

The third alleged victim, a 17-year-old student at Highland High School with emotional and learning disabilities, reported that she met a man on a dating site who asked her sexually-charged questions under a screen name police traced to Fies, according to the Times.

Fies faces a maximum 20-year prison sentence, the Post-Tribune reports. He is awaiting trial in Lake County Jail.

A Glen Burnie High School teacher, Jeffrey Robert Sears, Jr., is under arrest in Anne Arundel County, Md. after having been charged with multiple counts of child sexual abuse involving three 15 and 16-year-old student victims. B

ackground: On November 1, 2011, the Anne Arundel County Board of Education contacted the Department of Social Services regarding an allegation of a possible sexual relationship between a teacher and a student at Glen Burnie High School. The Anne Arundel County Board of Education immediately removed Sears from his assignment, pending the outcome of the investigation.

Detectives from the Anne Arundel County Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division began investigating the allegation. During the course of the investigation, which included collecting and analyzing evidence, conducting numerous witness and victim interviews and executing search warrants of residences, a total of three female victims were identified.

It was determined that all three victims had sexual relations with the teacher while they were attending Glen Burnie High School. The incidents took place both on and off of campus and during regular school hours and off hours. The victims were between the ages of 15 and 16 years old at the time of the offenses, which occurred from November of 2009 through October of 2011.

The Anne Arundel County Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division, the Anne Arundel County Department of Social Services, the Anne Arundel County Board of Education, and the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office worked closely together to conduct a thorough investigation into this matter.

Jeffrey Robert Sears Jr., 29, of 408 Luther Road in Glen Burnie, Md. was taken into custody at the Eastern District police station in Pasadena this morning (Dec. 8, 2011), at approximately 8:15 am.

After consultation with the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office, Sears was charged with:

- multiple counts of Sexual Abuse of a Minor,
- multiple counts of Fourth Degree Sex Offense,
- Third Degree Sex Offense,
- multiple counts of Perverted Practice,
- Sexual Solicitation of a Minor,
- First Degree Assault, and multiple counts of Second Degree   Assault.

Any additional victims or witnesses are urged to contact Detective Erin Brandt of the Criminal Investigation Division at 410-222-3482.

Police in Louisiana arrested a 28-year-old woman who they say had sex with a young teenage boy on multiple occasions after meeting at a summer Bible camp.

Heather Daughdrill, of Westlake, is accused of initiating the relationship while acting as a teacher and aide at a June religious retreat. She allegedly continued seeing the 13-year-old boy until her arrest in October, according to a press release from the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Department.

"The investigation revealed Daughdrill would engage in inappropriate sexual contact with the boy after picking him up from school without the parents' knowledge," the press release explains.

Authorities also say that they discovered "explicit text messages" between Daughdrill and the boy, whose identity remains anonymous.

Following her Nov. 28 arrest, Daughdrill now faces 17 criminal charges including sexual battery, carnal knowledge of a juvenile, kidnapping, indecent behavior with a juvenile and contributing to delinquency. Her bond in Calcasiue Parish is set at $47,000.

On the heels of two well-publicized national cases of child sexual abuse by coaches, some local men who say they were victims of alleged abuse by a coach are speaking out.

The men told NewsChannel 9 the abuse started while they were at Ooltewah Middle School in the 1980's. They're grown now and speaking out, hoping their story will help others find the courage to come forward as well.

"It's something that we dealt with in 6, 7, and 8 grade. Again, it's something that's come out with Syracuse and Penn State," Andy Ellington, who says he was molested, told us.

In fact, Ellington denied the abuse at first too. "I didn't want people to know. I definitely didn't want anyone to know at Ooltewah. I didn't want my mother to know. My mother was a single mom. My father died when I was 7. So this was something I did not want her to have to deal with," he said.

He says he was just 11 years old the first time anything happened and says he lost count of how many times he was allegedly molested by Stan Evans, a former teacher and coach at Ooltewah Middle School. Evans was close with many of his athletes and Ellington says he and others frequently spent the night at his home.

"The majority of the time, the real, if you were to call it fondling and things like that, was always off school premises. But I can't even imagine how many conduct unbecoming on school premises there were," Ellington said, recalling those difficult memories.

Michael Mercer says he's one of Evan's victims, too. He didn't want to speak on camera but explained to WGOW today, how the abuse started with Evans rubbing his shoulders.

"So then it goes from rubbing the shoulders, to a kiss on the forehead. Then it goes from a kiss on the forehead, to lets see how fast you can get undressed. Then lets pop your naked bottom," Mercer said.

Mercer and Ellington, along with two other men, filed a lawsuit against Evans in 1999 claiming they were molested on multiple occasions. However, the statute of limitations was up and Evans abruptly resigned from OMS and moved to Florida. Since then, they've been trying to heal and both hope their story can spare other kids the same experience.

"I do hope that the Hamilton County Board of Education will have an opportunity to have some kind of a standard operation procedure in place, to where if they do have these issues, it'll be taken care of without being swept under the rug. I can assure you in '98 it was," Ellington said. Ellington says he feels like he's healed from this mostly thanks to family and his church.

But he says, even with that, he still doesn't have closure with Coach Evans and he hopes hearing his story will help someone who's been through a similar situation. We tried to contact Evans to get his side of the story, but were unable to find any contact information for him.

A former Omaha middle school teacher, Shad Knutson, 35, will stand trial on seven felony counts in connection with allegations that he had inappropriate relations with five former students.

He is accused of inappropriate sexual contacts, by phone or text messaging, with two teenage girls, including requesting photos of one of the girls breasts. One of the girls said that she and Knutson often “made out” in his classroom after school, that he fondled her and made her touch him.

In addition to the two latest victims, Knutson was charged with lewd behavior with three other underage girls.

A trial date has not been set.

A head teacher at a school where a member of staff sexually abused a series of young children has been sacked.

Hillside First School teacher Nigel Leat was jailed indefinitely earlier this year after it was discovered the 52-year-old had filmed himself sexually assaulting pupils as young as six in the classroom.

Chris Hood, the head teacher at the school in Worle when Leat was committing his horrific crimes, was suspended in January pending a disciplinary inquiry into the leadership and management of the school and this week North Somerset Council confirmed he had been dismissed from his post.

The council stressed Mr Hood had not been accused of any criminal involvement, and that his dismissal did not indicate that he was party to Leat's activities. During the court case, the prosecution said that Leat was devious, manipulative and acted alone.

Parents received a short letter this week, telling them Mr Hood had "left the employment" of the Church Road school. A serious case review being carried out independently into school procedures is expected to end shortly and there will be a briefing for parents ahead of the publication of the results.

After Leat was sentenced, Avon and Somerset Police revealed that more victims had come forward.

It is thought that over his 15 years as a teacher at Hillside, Leat may have assaulted up to 40 victims.

Bristol Crown Court heard earlier this year that the father-of-two, from Brislington, had been abusing pupils as long ago as 1998, with the officer who led the investigation describing Leat's offences as "some of the worst and most sickening we have ever seen".

Leat – who pleaded guilty to 36 charges – was given an indeterminate sentence for public protection on the basis he posed a significant risk of causing serious physical or psychological harm to other young girls. He admitted a total of 32 offences against five girls at the school between September 2006 and July 2010.

The crimes were one count of attempted rape, eight sexual assaults by penetration and 23 further sexual assaults.

Leat also admitted charges of voyeurism; causing or inciting a child aged under 13 to engage in a sexual act; possessing more than 30,000 indecent photographs and movies of children, and possessing extreme pornography.

A San Diego man who taught at a Chula Vista elementary school was arrested Friday on suspicion of possessing child pornography. Gary Delaney Phillips, 54, who teaches at Clear View Elementary School, was taken into custody at his home about 8:30 a.m., according to the FBI.

Phillips became a focus of investigations after an FBI agent discovered email messages in which the suspect "expressed a sexual interest in children and indicated that he possessed images of child pornography," according to the bureau. A search of Phillips' residence allegedly turned up images depicting minors engaging in sexual activities, officials said.

Phillips was been booked into the Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown San Diego. He was expected to appear before a federal judge early next week. Phillips has taught in the Chula Vista Elementary School District for more than 20 years. Phillips has been placed on paid administrative leave.

A crime tip line in Sacramento has been flooded with calls about a case in which police are investigating allegations that a principal sexually abused students for the past 15 years, authorities said today. Robert Adams is being investigated for alleged incidents involving at least 10 current and former students at the now-shuttered Creative Frontiers School that he owns, according to the police department. In addition to people calling with information (based on a press release), a facility volunteer at the school said she walked in on Adams one time “laying on a mat on the floor with a girl about 7 or 8 years old... massaging her (in different areas)...”. Detectives are reviewing evidence, no arrests have been made yet, and Adams denies the allegations.

Updates will follow.

Thomas Henry Ceglarek, 58, a former San Diego elementary school Counselor was sentenced Monday to three years and 10 months in federal prison in a child pornography case. The judge also sentenced him to 15 years of supervised release and ordered him to pay a $5,000 fine and register as a sex offender.

Ceglarek admitted that he possessed two computers that had images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He also admitted that he falsely claimed that he was unemployed in Oct. 2010 in order to obtain a court-appointed attorney. In fact, he was being paid about $70,000 a year by the school district, the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

Ceglarek, who now lives in Mercer, Wis., had been a counselor at Foster Elementary School in the Allied Gardens area.

Escondido police arrested a Valley High School Teacher Friday morning, about two weeks after a young woman came forward and accused him of having inappropriate sexual contact with her while she had been his student. Mark Humerez, 35, of San Marcos, was arrested at a Starbucks, as he headed to a meeting he believed would be with the victim, said Escondido police Lt. Chris Wynn. The girl was 16 when they met, while she was a student in Humerez’s class. Police started their investigation after the woman, now 19 and living out of state, came forward in late May and told police about the relationship, which reportedly started in September 2007 and ran about 16 months.

Humerez is accused of having inappropriate sexual contact with the victim twice, both incidents occurred in his classroom, Wynn said. Wynn said police do not believe there were any other victims, but anyone with information can contact Det. Julie Barnes at 760-839-4758.

Australian police have carried out a world-first bust on a sophisticated online child abuse network, arresting 11 men in four states and rescuing two abused children. Covert police operatives spent four months infiltrating the network, secretly taking the place of those they arrested to allow them to delve deeper into the group of men aged between 26 and 67 who were sharing images and videos of the sexual abuse of children as young as four. The organization, which used complex "peer-to-peer" software rather than a traditional central server to make it harder for law enforcement agencies to uncover the material, is the first of its kind closed down by the multinational Virtual Global Task force, chaired by the Australian Federal Police.

The men, many of whom had direct access to children on a daily basis, included a teacher, IT specialist, security worker and a convicted sex offender, as well as a farmer. Two young children were removed from the custody of a 26-year-old NSW man, whose identity was suppressed, and he was charged with having sexual intercourse with a child under 10. Parents and students at the exclusive King's School were in shock after it was revealed long-term preparatory school teacher Gregory John Coupland, 40, from Forestville in Sydney's northern beaches, was among the men. Coupland, who had taught at the school for 12 years and was master in charge of snow sports, taking groups of primary-aged children on regular multi-day skiing trips, was also running a scout troop until he was charged last month with using a carriage service to access child pornography, using a carriage service to transmit child pornography and possessing child abuse material.

King's Preparatory School head Keith Dallywater said that the news had come "as a significant shock" but confirmed that no students had been harmed in any way. Six of the men were from NSW, three from Victoria, and one each from Queensland and South Australia. AFP manager of hi-tech investigations Commander Grant Edwards said, while Operation Danton had been a success, police were aware of other child abuse networks using the same file sharing service and forensic searches were ongoing.

"The images accessed are of real children being abused and it's a shocking thing," Commander Edwards said.

Sentencing was postponed Wednesday for a karate instructor who carried on a months-long sexual relationship with one of his teenage students. Eric Protas, 38, pleaded guilty in February to 29 felony charges, including committing lewd acts on a child. Protas, of La Mesa, CA, faces a maximum of 48 years in state prison. The victim now 14, testified last October that he had oral and anal sex about 300 times between August 2009 and May 2010 with Protas, the owner-operator of the Allied Gardens School of Martial Arts on Waring Road.

Three priests–Edward Avery, Charles Engelhardt, and a Catholic school teacher, James Brennan, have been charged with raping and assaulting two young boys over the course of several years. A fifth man, Monsignor William Lynn, has been charged with child endangerment for allegedly allowing the abuse to continue. Monsignor Lynn was one of Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua’s top aides. The indictments were made by a grand jury, and it is believed to be the first time a high ranking Catholic official has been accused of being criminally accountable for covering up priest abuse. Advocates for abuse victims celebrated the indictments. “This news means that finally one of the hundreds of complicit Catholic officials who have hidden or are hiding clergy sex crimes might be brought to justice”, said Barbara Dorris, outreach director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).

A 14-year-old girl testified on Tuesday in the trial of a local music teacher accused of molesting the girl and her two sisters. The girls, who are now 12 to 14 years old, are sisters and related to Kinney through marriage. The 14-year old said the molestation happened when she was about 9 years old. Kinney was a music teacher and taught part-time at the Ramona Music Center. Investigator said they also found more than 150 images of child porn on his computer. The younger sisters are expected to testify. Kinney has been out on bail since his arrest in 2009.

Eric Protas, 38, the owner of a popular martial arts school in Allied Gardens, is accused of molesting one of his students. He pleaded not guilty to felony charges. He is accused of engaging in "strong sexual conduct" with a 13-yr-old boy, from July 2009 to May 2010. The boy came forward with information about the molestations, the prosecutor said. More than 60 of his supporters filled the courtroom and some say he has been a "wonderful role model for my children" and a "pillar of the community". He is being held on $1 million bail.

A teacher who taught at some of New York City’s most elite preparatory schools was accused of possessing an astounding amount of child pornography on his computer and sharing images with others, according to the Daily News. John E. Thomas, 28, was charged in federal court with possessing child porn and released on $50,000 bail. Thomas previously taught at Horace Mann Nursery School on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and Friend’s Seminary, and was expected to begin teaching fifth grade students this fall. He had also served as a camp counselor for one of the city’s Y locations.

Melissa Huckaby, a former Sunday School Teacher, was sentenced to life in prison without parole. She plead guilty to kidnapping and murdering 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, who lived nearby. Sandra Cantu disappeared in March 2009. Her body was found stuffed in a suitcase and left in a lake. It appeared that she had been sexually molested, beaten with a rolling pin, and strangled, however a gag order was recently removed, so more details may be released to the public soon.

Adrienne Feistel, 36, a former teacher at Rosa Parks Elementary School, who pleaded guilty to committing sexual acts with a 12-year-old boy who was her student, was sentenced to three years in prison, the maximum sentence sought by prosecutors. She was tried last year on 17 charges related to child molestation, but the jury was deadlocked and a mistrial was declared.

Raymond Firth, 39, former teacher at Pacific Rim Elementary School, is scheduled to be sentenced, on April 26, to three years, eight months in prison for sexual battery and false imprisonment involving three girls in his third-grade classrooms in 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Amy Victoria Beck, a former middle school teacher, stunned police with her unsolicited confession that she had an affair with a 14-yearold student. She has pleaded no contest to charges of unlawful sex with a minor. She is expected to receive 2 years in state prison.

Ronald Bartlett, an art teacher in the Victor Central School District in New York, was found guilty on misdemeanor counts of forcibly touching and endangering the welfare of a 17-year-old student. He was fired from his teaching job and his certification to teach will be revoked.

Carmina Lopez, 34, an elementary school teacher at South Bay Union School District, was acquitted last month of molesting a former student, and she is back at work after her teaching credentials were reinstated. However, she is not working as a teacher.

Carmina Erica Lopez, a 33-yr.-old South Bay teacher, was accused of molesting her former student and Godson, now 16, over a 4-yr. period. She accused him of lying and said that he was the one who raped her, and that if she went to the police, he would say she molested him, and she feared losing her career and her 5-year-old child. She was acquitted of all charges by a jury who didn’t believe what the boy said.

Ashley Jo Beach, 38, a middle school teacher, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her relationship with a 13-year old boy, a former student. Prosecutors said Beach had targeted the boy from their first contact in April when he was only 12. "She began grooming him (buying him shoes and clothes, etc.) when he was in 6th grade and she was his teacher", said the prosecutor. Beach has admitted the relationship lasted over the summer and that they even had sex in her classroom with the door locked.

A judge determined yesterday that there had been jury misconduct in the case involving Adrienne E. Feistel, 36, who faces several charges related to child molestation. Feistel is accused of several felonies, including lewd acts with a child under 14 and sexual activity with a child under 18. She remains out of jail on $50,000 bail. She worked as a teacher at Rosa Parks Elementary School in San Diego, but resigned in 2006. School officials have declined to give the reason for her resignation.

Mark Kinney, 47, was arrested after an extensive investigation by the Sheriff's Child Abuse Unit with the assistance of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the San Diego D.A's office. He is charged with lewd acts with a child, manufacturing child pornography, and possession of child pornography. Kinney is a musician and a private music instructor. Sheriff's investigators are concerned because many of his students are children. Therefore, there is the possibility of unreported victims. He maintained a music studio in Ramona. However, he taught private lessons throughout San Diego County. Anyone who believes they may have been victimized is urged to call Sheriff's Detective Chris Davis at 858-974-2310.

Corey Hogue, 37, a physical education teacher at Oceanside High School was arrested yesterday on allegations that he had a two-year sexual relationship with a student, beginning when she was 15 years old. The female student reported the relationship to the police in late October, telling detectives that the sexual encounters took place at Hogue's house in Oceanside, where he lives with his wife and children, including a daughter who is a freshman at the same school. Hogue was hired in 2006 to teach physical education and health, as well as coach boys varsity basketball at Oceanside High. He also co-founded Kings Court Basketball and Training, which offers individualized coaching.

Raymond Lewis Firth, 38, a former teacher at Pacific Rim Elementary School in Carlsbad, CA, pleaded not guilty to charges that he molested three third-grade students during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 school years. Trial is set for Jan. 12. If found guilty on all counts, Firth faces up to 18 years in state prison.

A former Winchester middle school teacher's aide has pleaded guilty to charges he used the Internet to lure girls into pornography and sex, and raped one 14-year-old. Prosecutors said 29-year-old Christopher French, who was a special education aide at McCall Middle School, groomed girls though online chats by sending and receiving naked photographs. In one case, prosecutors said he raped a 14-year old girl at her house. Authorities said French committed crimes against six underaged female victims. He was sentenced to two consecutive sentences of 2 ½ years at the Billerica House of Corrections.

John Spring, 57, a former Lutheran school teacher, has been charged with possessing dozens of images of child pornography on his home computer. Spring was a science teacher at Trinity Lutheran School in Hicksville from 1974 to 2007. Investigations began in August 2007 when Spring was observed starting at boys at the Eisenhower Park Aquatic Center and following them into the locker room.

Robert Melvin Goode Jr, 60, has pleaded guilty to one count of continues sexual abuse of a minor and one count of forcible lewd acts upon a child. Goode Jr, a North county school administrator was given 12 years in prison after pleading guilty. Goode Jr, began abusing the girl when she was 8 and continued until she was 14. Goode Jr, worked at Classical Academy High School in Escondido.

Carmina Erica Lopez, 33, is charged with eight counts of committing a lewd act on a child. She was arrested in Jan. 2008 when allegations of her alleged four-year sexual relationship with the victim came to light. Lopez is also accused of having sexual intercourse with the alleged victim in her home. The molestation began when the boy was 11 and Lopez was a sixth-grade teacher at Nester Elementary school in Chula Vista. The boy now 15, has told CPS that Lopez had repeatedly forced him to have sex with her starting in 2004 and continuing until last June. The boy is Lopez’s godson and was her student.

The City school system fired three people over the hiring of a Teacher who now faces child sex abuse charges in Nashville and Chattanooga. Officials said procedures were not followed in reviewing the application of Ronald Boykin as he moved from a support job to a teaching post.

Adrienne Elizabeth Feistel, 35, was a fifth grade Teacher at Rosa Parks Elementary school in City Heights. Feistel is being accused of committing lewd acts on a child under 14. Feistel, if convicted, faces a significant amount of time in prison. The fifth grade teacher started having sex with the boy when he was in the seventh grade. She  moved in with the family and would sneak into the boys room after the family was asleep.

Stephanie Jo Walters, 27, has been accused of engaging in sexual acts with a 14-year-old student. Walters has been a teacher at Musselman Middle School for five years. Walters had approached a student and led him to a janitor's closet where they kissed. Walters had the boy touch her while she rubbed him inappropriately.

Melissa Lavender, 32, a former culinary arts teacher, has pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted aggravated stalking, as a plea agreement. Lavender was originally accused of engaging in sex acts with two students under the age of 18.

Robert Douglas Johnston, 61, has pleaded guilty on charges of sexual abuse. Johnston was a band director at Mt. Hebron High school since 1969. He was involved with one of his students for two years. After investigating, police believe Johnston had been sexually abusing the girl inside the school since she was 15. A grand jury indicted Johnston on counts of sexual abuse of a minor, third and fourth degree sex offense, and obscene telephone misuse, according to court documents.

Gary Wilcox, 43, is accused of having sex with a sixteen-year-old student. Wilcox is a geography teacher and girls soccer coach. Wilcox has taught at Helix High since 1995. Wilcox is being charged for having sex with a minor, among several other charges. Wilcox was later found guilty and was sentenced to one year in jail and three years probation.

Edgardo Carlos Vilas, 42, was sentenced to three years in federal prison for possessing child pornography. Vilas taught at Rancho Del Campo, which is a ranch facility where students are juvenile offenders. Vilas' computer contained over 600 images of minors who were involved in sexual acts with an adult.

John Kyujoon Lee, 40, has pleaded guilty to statutory rape and three other sex-related charges. Lee was a teacher at the San Diego school of Creative and Performing Arts in Paradise Hills. Lee had started a relationship with a girl who at that time was 15. Lee continued to be involved with her till she was 18. Lee is also facing 10 felony and misdemeanor crimes, which could give him an additional eight years in prison.

Angela Renee Comer, 28, had pleaded guilty of third-degree sodomy. Comer was having sex with a 14-year-old middle school student and had taken him to Mexico to escape authorities.

Rachel Holt, 35, had pleaded guilty to second-degree rape. Holt was initially charged with 28 counts of first-degree rape. Holt a sixth-grade science teacher was having sex with a 13-year-old student and will now spend 10 years in prison.

Dennis Michael McKeown, 42, has pleaded guilty to three counts of committing lewd acts on a child under the age of 14. McKeown had been molesting his nephew at his home in La Mesa, CA. while babysitting him.

Mark Vail, 27, who was a teacher and coach at a church school has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. Vail was convicted for having sex with a 12-year-old student.

A former South Bay schools assistant principal was arrested on child pornography charges after he was pulled out of a meeting at a yacht club. He was among thousands of people identified nationwide through credit card transactions used for membership in child pornography web sites, according to court documents. Because there are so many possible suspects, authorities said they prioritize investigations of people in positions of trust.

Kari Lynne St. Onge, 30, is a teacher at Le Grand Elementary. St Onge faces up to eight years in prison and fines up to $10,000. St Onge engaged in a sex act with a boy who was her student in Dec. 2002.

Jason Abhyan Kar, 28, has been found guilty of nine counts of molestation. Abhyan an elementary school teacher was charged with molesting boys, ages 9 to 11. Abhyan was the fourth grade teacher at Village View Elementary school in Huntington Beach and Portola Hills elementary school in Trabucco Canyon.

Shawn Austin Owen,29, a substitute teacher worked as an assistant coach for the Mira Mesa High boys basketball, football and baseball teams. He also coached girls softball. Owen had been involved in illegal sexual acts with minors for the past four years, before being caught. Owen faces charges that could include multiple counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and other illegal sex acts.

Matthew Louis Haar, 32, a physical education teacher at La Mesa Middle school has been charged and sentenced to six months in jail for having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl.