Teacher’s Alleged Actions Spark LAPD Investigation

Los Angeles police are investigating reports from sixth-grade students at Alfred B. Nobel Middle School that a substitute teacher behaved “inappropriately” in a classroom, an LAPD detective said Tuesday.

The teacher, a frequent substitute at Nobel, who was teaching an English and math class Friday, is under investigation for child annoyance, said Det. Jaye Thomas of the Los Angles Police Department. Annoying or molesting a child is a misdemeanor sex offense punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and up to a year in County Jail.

Thomas would not disclose what the children reported, saying only that she was investigating “inappropriate actions on the part of the teacher.”

“There’s no one in custody, and I’m in the process . . . of interviewing all the children,” she said.

Thomas interviewed the teacher, but neither she nor Nobel Principal Robert Coburn would confirm his name. The teacher could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

At least 20 sixth-graders were in the classroom where the alleged incident occurred last Friday at about 10 a.m. They were kept after school for questioning, and their parents were told that an incident had occurred but were given no details, Coburn said.

“At this point it’s really out of the school’s hands,” he said Tuesday, referring questions to the LAPD and the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The substitute teacher will not be assigned to any LAUSD schools pending the outcome of the police investigation, which should be completed by the end of the week, said John Blatter, supervisor of the school district’s employee relations office.

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The teacher has worked in LAUSD schools for nearly two years, according to the office that maintains the district’s pool of 6,000 substitutes.

“Apparently he has had a good reputation at multiple schools in that area for providing successful service,” Blatter said.

As to the incident, Blatter said, “It’s my understanding that there was no physical contact directly with any children.”

Even if the substitute teacher is not charged with a crime, he could be banned from LAUSD’s substitute pool and lose his state-issued credential, officials said.