Man Admits Molesting Boy, Implicates 2nd Defendant

A 39-year-old unpaid volunteer at Reseda Park pleaded guilty to child molestation Monday, just before testimony began in the case of a park employee accused with him of sexually assaulting a 6-year-old boy.

In a plea bargain, Ronald Ray Rudd, who lived in a recreational vehicle near the park and helped coach young people in athletics, will be sentenced to at least 15 years in prison for his role in the molestation.

Rudd said in Van Nuys Municipal Court Monday that he and Lars Juden, 38, a part-time recreation assistant at the park, molested the boy three times in the six weeks before their arrest Aug. 4.

Juden, of Reseda, had worked at the park since 1983, chiefly coaching young boys in T-ball games, Los Angeles parks officials said.

Monday’s testimony by the victim’s mother and a doctor who examined the boy did not implicate Juden, but Deputy Dist. Atty. Eduard R. Abele said he will call the victim today. Police say the boy told them he was molested by both men in Rudd’s RV.

The victim also told them that he once saw a 4-year-old girl in the vehicle, said Detective Joe Diglio. Diglio said police located the girl, but because of her age they were unable to establish whether she had been molested.

A spokesman for the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks said the city is in the process of firing Juden, who has been in custody in lieu of $7,500 bail since his arrest.

In addition to pleading guilty, Rudd also admitted in court that he had been convicted of child molestation in 1973 and 1978. His record was being checked. If the investigation discovers that both his prior convictions were for felonies, he will be sentenced to 16 years under the plea bargain accepted by Municipal Court Judge Robert L. Swasey.

Sentencing was set for Sept. 18.