| Redlands Daily Facts Molestation conviction Former Clement Middle School teacher guilty of 60 of 64 counts By COLLEEN MENSCHING Staff Writer Tuesday, June 28, 2005 - SAN BERNARDINO A former Clement Middle School teacher stands convicted 60 of 64 charges that he molested four former Clement students between 1999 and 2002 but will not face the mandatory life sentence sought by the prosecution. Sean Ramiro Lopez, 31, was convicted by San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Michael Welch, who decided the case because Lopez waived his right to a jury trial. The verdict came this morning after a two-week trial and one week of deliberation by Welch. Welch convicted Lopez of 16 charges that he committed lewd and lascivious acts against one victim under the age of 14. He acquitted him on four charges that he molested a different boy who was also younger than 14 years old. Under California law, conviction of molesting more than one child under the age of 14 carries a mandatory life sentence. "I've had time to review my notes. I took a large amount of notes during the trial. I asked that the court reporter to read to me the closing statements from both counsel," Welch said this morning. "The court believed the testimony (of the first victim) that the series of child molestations occurred when he was in the eighth grade" and that the boy was 13 when the molestation began, Welch said. Welch also found Lopez guilty of 24 more counts against the same victim after the victim turned 14. The second boy who said Lopez molested him while he was 13 "caused the greatest concern for the court," according to Welch, who said he was "not convinced beyond a reasonable doubt" by the teen's testimony. "By his continuing answer of I don't remember, I don't remember,' he really gave me no confidence as to the truth" of his statements. Lopez was found guilty of 15 counts of molestation against one boy who fell into the "14 or 15 years old" category, and four counts against another boy in the same classification. Defense attorney John Aquilina said he was pleased that Lopez will not receive a mandatory life sentence. He was disappointed with conviction on 40 counts against the boy who was 13 when Lopez began victimizing him. "I thought he was the least credible witness," he said. He said he was not surprised that the other accuser under 14 years old was disbelieved by the court. Aquilina called the boy a "false victim" during the trial. "I was happy with the guilties' on all but four counts ... we thought we had proved the last boy (was victimized ) also. I respect Judge Welch and he did what he thought was right. That's all you can ask of any trier of fact." Lopez, of Mentone, was a 28-year-old English teacher at Clement when he was arrested in February 2002 on suspicion of molesting three boys between 1999 and 2001. After his arrest, a fourth boy came forward and said he had also been molested by Lopez and that the last incident occurred just days before his teacher was taken into custody. When the molestation allegations arose Lopez, who began teaching at Clement in 1999, was placed on paid administrative leave, according to reports. Lopez resigned his position in April 2002, according to the Redlands Unified School District. Before he joined the Redlands Unified School District, Lopez was a reserve officer with the Montclair Police Department. He was hired there in 1996 but was fired, Montclair police Lt. Keith Jones has said. The cause of the termination was a personnel matter and the department is prevented from disclosing it, officials said. Four teens testified that Lopez recruited them for a paid clinical trial of growth-enhancing hormones that proved to be a sham. Lopez gave the boys pills they though would increase the size of their muscles and genitals and then made appointments with them to collect "samples" of their semen, they said. The boys visited an apartment, believed to be owned by the company testing the "supplement," where they undressed for Lopez, submitted to measurements of their muscles and genitals, and masturbated while watching pornographic videos, they said. Lopez collected semen from their bodies using a syringe, according to testimony. Lopez told the boys the samples they gave would be analyzed and that the boys would be paid according to the results, the boys said. Two of the teens testified that Lopez stimulated them in order to collect samples. They said they were told if someone else was touching them their results would be better and they would be paid more. One victim, who said he was 13 at the time, testified that Lopez described the made-up effect as "the magic hand." The apartment where the sample collection took place was actually Lopez's residence, the boys said. Some of the boys were told Lopez had established bank accounts in their names where their earnings would be deposited, according to testimony. No evidence of such accounts were presented in court, but they boys did testify that Lopez sometimes gave them cash or bought them items when they asked him to. The prosecution played for the court a taped conversation between Lopez and one of his victims. The conversation was recorded by police in 2002 without Lopez's knowledge. During the call Lopez and the boy discussed how much money the boy had earned providing samples and referred to the boy's age. "How many samples did you collect?" the boy asked during the call. " I would say at least 25 individual samples," Lopez replied. The boy questioned Lopez's estimate and Lopez went into further detail, referring to the number of weeks and occasions the boy had opportunities to give samples during the school year. "And then you left in June and you didn't come back until September and then one time in September remember I picked you up from school and we just chilled? And that was one time. So in a year and a half you started when you were 13 years and a half, you just turned 15 in June oh yeah, 25 to 30 samples," Lopez said. The boy was owed $2,000 or $3,000 dollars, Lopez said during the call. Cameron told the judge that the recording should "erase any reasonable doubt" that Lopez molested a 13-year-old. Aquilina argued that Lopez was talking about a non-sexual relationship between the two when he references the boy's age and that nothing sexual occurred before the boy turned 14. Lopez allowed the boy to call him by his first name, gave him car rides, played basketball with him after school and bought him a gym membership at 24-Hour Fitness in Redlands, the boys testified. The other victims reported a similar relationship with Lopez. Lopez befriended his victims and "handpicked" them because they were vulnerable, Cameron told the court during the trial. According to testimony, one victim's father was ill and died during the period of molestation; another was a mid-year transfer from another school; a third said he had discussed problems at home with Lopez online before the molestation started. The youngest victim testified to having a troubled home life after his father remarried. "The defendant did what he had to do to take advantage of the boys sexually and molest them," Cameron said. Aquilina had a different message after the trial. "Young teenage kids can make allegations. Some of them stand and some of them don't. The public should keep an open mind. This guy is presumed innocent just like a petty thief, a drunk driver, or anything else." http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/Stories/0,1413,209~22484~2942583,00.html# |