Teacher Faces Murder Count in Driver’s Beating

A San Fernando Valley middle school teacher who allegedly helped a group of gang members pull a man from a car and beat him to death with fists, sticks and pool cues in vengeance over a traffic accident was being held Monday on suspicion of murder, Los Angeles police said.

The dead man’s brother was seriously injured in the attack.

Denneth Thaddeus Jackson, 26, a social studies teacher at Madison Middle School in North Hollywood since September, was being held in lieu of $1 million bail and will be arraigned on murder charges today, police said.

Jackson was placed on unpaid leave by the Los Angeles Unified School District, which is standard policy for employees charged with felonies, said school district spokesman Bill Rivera.

“We have a pretty good idea he was actively involved (in the beatings),” said LAPD Detective Joel Price.

“I’m shocked,” Sol Bialeck, the school’s assistant principal, said Monday.

Two juveniles allegedly involved in the beatings have been released to their parents pending the formal filing of charges, while seven arrested adults, ranging in age from 18 to 22, will be either arraigned or released today, said LAPD Detective Rick Swanston.

The incident started early Saturday while Jackson was having a party at his apartment in the 7100 block of Amigo Avenue in Reseda, investigators said.

Party-goers, including juveniles, drank alcohol and smoked marijuana, police said. Also present were several members of a local gang who were Jackson’s friends, although Jackson himself is not a gang member, officers said.

About 12:30 a.m., the party-goers heard a crash on the street, and several rushed out to find that a pickup truck belonging to one of them had been struck by a car driven by 23-year-old Julio Aguilar.

Investigators said Aguilar, who was intoxicated, wanted to make a deal with the truck’s owner to avoid arrest, but other party-goers called police.

A neighbor, who declined to be identified, said Aguilar appeared to be trying to flee, and fought with the party-goers who restrained him until officers arrested Aguilar on suspicion of drunk driving.

About 2:30 a.m., Aguilar’s brother, Jose, 21, and 29-year-old uncle, Tony Orellana, bailed him out of jail, and the three--apparently on their way home--drove past the scene of the accident to look at the damage to the truck, Price said.

An argument broke out at the scene with the party-goers, who dragged the brothers out of the car, leaving Orellana in the back seat, and began beating them with lumber and pool cues, Price said.

Meanwhile, Orellana climbed into the front seat of the car and drove home. Jose Aguilar also managed to escape and met Orellana at their nearby house briefly before returning to try to rescue his brother, police said.

Ten male party-goers, including Jackson, continued beating Julio Aguilar and began striking Jose Aguilar before Jose was able to escape a second time, Price said. Jose Aguilar was in serious condition at a Northridge hospital.

Jackson had been a playground supervisor for the school district since 1990 and recently obtained a teaching credential, Rivera said.