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Estey Bomberger reviews and monitors news stories and reports of crime and lawsuits involving public and private schools nationwide. The following reports are for schools located in San Mateo County, CA. If your child has been sexually abused or negligently supervised and you would like more information about your options or rights in a civil suit, contact us for a free consultation.
- CENTRAL MIDDLE SCHOOL (SAN CARLOS)
828 Chestnut St, San Carlos, CA 94070
Neal Sato, 34, of San Bruno, a physical education teacher at Central Middle School, was arrested in January 2006 for allegedly videotaping Central Middle School female students changing clothing using a video camera hidden in a school office. After a student came forward to San Carlos Police on November 28, 2006 and reported that Sato had made her change her clothes in his office, police detectives obtained a search warrant for Sato’s home and seized two video cameras and two computers, which yielded more than 100 deleted files of girls changing into sports uniforms, and several images of child pornography. . On August 29, 2006, he pleaded no contest to four felony counts of lewd and lascivious acts with a minor under the age of 14 stemming from incidents in which he grabbed four girls, all 13 years old, by the back of their gym shorts. Sato originally faced more than 20 years in prison, but he changed his plea after the state Supreme Court declined to review a motion seeking to dismiss the case. In November 2006, Sato was sentenced to six years in prison. News Source: insidebayarea.com
- STANBRIDGE ACADEMY (SAN MATEO)
515 E Poplar Ave, San Mateo, CA 94401
Jeffrey Mike Hicks, 36, of Campbell, started teaching at Stanbridge Academy in 2011. He was arrested in May 2013 after being placed on leave for allegedly exchanging Facebook messages with a teenager about masturbation. The school’s head also found a CD belonging to Hicks containing pornographic videos. Hicks taught science and sex education and also was the founding artistic director the the nonprofit Actors Theatre Center in Santa Clara. In June 2014, he was sentenced to six months in jail, and required to register as a sex offender for life. He was also give three years probation. News Source: San Mateo Daily Journal