Is Your Government Protecting Your Children From Registered Sex Offenders?

As the largest school district in California, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) consists of hundreds of thousands of students, as well as numerous education professionals who are dedicated to serving the educational needs of children and young people. However, despite these credentials, the last several years have left the LAUSD reeling from multiple issues pertaining to allegations of sexual abuse toward its students

This has come in the form of numerous lawsuits alleging and providing proof of the district’s failure to protect the safety of its students.

However, there is evidence that not only has the school district failed in this respect, but other government entities and individuals are failing as well.

A startling example of government agency incompetency

According to a report detailed in CityWatch LA, a man who was a registered sex offender served as a volunteer poll worker at Van Nuys elementary school.

In the very early morning hours before voters went to the polls, an unaccompanied man brought voting equipment and confidential voter information into a Los Angeles elementary school’s auditorium. This occurred at the same time children and teachers began to filter in.

As a registered sex offender with a past aggravated felony for lascivious or lewd acts with a child under 14 years of age, the man is prohibited by law to be present on the property.

The only instance in which a registered sex offender may be permitted on school grounds, according to the LAUSD, is when the individual is a parent or guardian of a student at the school and needs to address specific business related to the school regarding the student. The individual must also inform the principal of their sex offender status prior to entering the grounds.

Daniel Guss, freelance reporter of The Guss Report, wrote of his concern regarding a law recently signed by the Governor that will drop the requirement for certain sex offenders in the state to register for life on the Megan’s Law website.

Guss informed the school principle of the incident. The LAPD investigated the matter, spoke to the offender and the principal. The result – no arrests were made.

“Who is looking out for the rights of parents of school children to know when an unauthorized entry is made onto a school campus, as well as the rights of all registered voters to know when their personal information has been compromised,” says Guss.

Guss also explained that the City Clerk of Los Angeles obtains lists of volunteers from the County and was responsible for overseeing the election. Sometime after the incident occurred, the Clerk had still not received notification of the incident from the Registrar-Recorder.

Guss went on to point out that Los Angeles City Council member Nury Martinez, who represents the District in which the school is located, remained silent about the incident when questioned by the reporter.

The school district claimed it was not able to confirm the person’s status as a California registered sex offender, either through Megan’s Law website or law enforcement. It stated that, “[t]o date, LA Unified has no information about the identity of the alleged sex offender, nor was it confirmed that a registered sex offender was, in fact, on campus.”

The District did acknowledge, however, the information provided by Guss, who provided a concise warning based on the failure of various government entities in this matter:

“In this instance, pay less attention to the sex offender in question, and more to the slew of government agencies that either didn’t know what was going on or have turned a blind eye to it and have collectively failed to inform one specific Los Angeles community about the matter.”

At Taylor & Ring, our Los Angeles attorneys are committed to vigorously helping victims of child sexual abuse. We seek to protect our youngest clients with compassionate advocacy, while pursuing accountability for their abusers. If your child has suffered sexual abuse, schedule a free, no obligation, consultation with a skilled attorney on our team. Call us today at 310-776-6390 or fill out our contact form.