La Mesa

The former principal of a Lutheran church school in La Mesa pleaded guilty Monday to three counts of performing lewd acts with two girls from the school.

Eugene Lee Petersen, 37, of La Mesa, entered his plea on the day the girls, ages 12 and 13, were due to testify against him in a preliminary hearing. Petersen is a former principal and 7th- and 8th-grade teacher at the St. Luke’s Lutheran Church Day School, 5150 Wilson St.

San Diego Municipal Court Judge Jesus Rodriguez dismissed nine other counts of child molestation against Petersen and set sentencing for Jan. 5.

In a plea bargain, the district attorney’s office agreed not to oppose a sentence in County Jail and a period of 10 years on probation.

Petersen faces a maximum of three years in jail and a $3,000 fine. He will also have to register as a sex offender because of his felony conviction.

Several parents of children in the school showed up at the hearing.

“I would like to see him removed from teaching, I would like to see him removed from contact with children,” said Joyce Clabaugh, who identified herself as a “concerned parent.”

Deputy Dist. Atty. Aaron Katz said the plea bargain was entered into after discussions with the girls’ parents. The girls were spared from testifying because of the plea.

“We felt the plea bargain was in the interest of the public,” Katz said.

If the judge feels the sentence should be more than three years, Petersen will have the right to have his guilty plea withdrawn.

He remains free without bail.