Former Councilman And Substitute Teacher Pleads To Child Porn

Los Angeles CA

25 February, 2021

Description

LOS ANGELES, CA — A former Pomona city councilman and substitute teacher was ordered Wednesday to register as a sex offender for life following his no contest plea to criminal charges. Rubio Ramiro Gonzalez, 45, was also sentenced to a minimum of 52 weeks of sex offender counseling, along with two years probation, according to Deputy District Attorney Angela Brunson. Gonzalez pleaded no contest to one felony count of possession of child sexual abuse material — formerly referred to as possession of child pornography — in his email accounts, along with one misdemeanor count of annoying or molesting a child involving an inappropriate photo taken of a girl at an elementary school where he was a substitute teacher. Three other similar misdemeanor counts — involving photos taken of other clothed elementary school students — were dismissed as a result of the plea, Brunson said. "Rubio Gonzalez is a good man and a devoted public servant who did great work for the community," his attorney, Mark Werksman, said after the plea. "He deeply regrets the things that happened in this case and he's taking positive steps to move forward with his life." He noted that his client has "taken full responsibility." Gonzalez -- who is no longer on the city council or working as a substitute teacher -- was arrested last May following an investigation by the District Attorney's Bureau of Investigation and released later that day on $100,000 bond. The criminal charges were filed last June. The Daily Bulletin reported that Pomona Mayor Tim Sandoval called on Gonzalez to resign from office and that the City Council voted unanimously in favor of censuring the councilman following his arrest. In a statement, District Attorney George Gascon said, "He took advantage of his position and violated the privacy and innocence of children. Given the underlying conduct in this case, we are requiring that he register as a sex offender for life and never teach children again." City News Service