Sunland Teacher Faces Trial in Alleged Fondling of Girls

A Sunland Elementary School teacher was ordered Thursday to stand trial for allegedly fondling several third-grade girls, even though the prosecution was not able to say specifically when the incidents occurred.

John Sampson Njoroge, who taught third grade at Sunland until his arrest June 29, will be tried on 15 counts of committing lewd acts with a child. He is accused of fondling six girls over a two-year period beginning in 1993. He is being held at the Pitchess Detention Center, unable to post $750,000 in bail.

The girls did not testify at the preliminary hearing. But prosecutor Susan Chasworth said the girls told police that they and several other students had been fondled repeatedly by Njoroge during class and in front of other students. But none of the three investigating police officers who testified knew the date or time of the alleged fondling and could not describe the circumstances under which they occurred.

Chasworth said in an interview after the hearing that child victims of sexual abuse commonly do not remember exact dates, times or places. She said the victims would testify at the trial.

Investigators also testified that they found numerous photographs of Njoroge’s students at his house, but none of the snapshots were lewd or of a sexual nature, Officer Rosibel Ferrufino said.

“So they were just ordinary classroom pictures?” defense attorney Richard J. Schwab asked.

“Yes,” Ferrufino replied.

Ferrufino testified that two of the girls said Njoroge had penetrated them with his finger. But she said the girls were never seen by a doctor.

Schwab suggested in court that Njoroge, who is African American, was singled out for the accusations because he is the only black teacher in the school. The first girl to complain did so after her father pointed out Njoroge at a school function and commented that he “didn’t like the way he looked,” Schwab said in court.

Njoroge has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

“Mr. Njoroge categorically denies that there was any inappropriate touching,” Schwab said. Njoroge will be arraigned in San Fernando Superior Court Nov. 2. If convicted, he faces a maximum of life imprisonment.