LA teachers union tries, fails to defend teachers accused of abuse

Nypost · May 21, 2026 · 925 words · By John Manly

Child Protection Institutional Failure Union Accountability

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What to know about Child Protection

LA teachers union tries, fails to defend teachers accused of abuse See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 14

Techniques found 5

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center88%

Right12%

8 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

LA teachers union tries, fails to defend teachers accused of abuse See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The California Post on GoogleLA teachers union representative Glenn Sacks appears to believe (“Teachers deserve presumption of innocence,” May 13) that he has all the answers for the ongoing problem of child sexual abuse in our schools.

Common ground

He blames the victims; he blames the US Department of Education; he blames everyone but the predators and the school administrators who cover up their crimes.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Name Calling / Labeling, Causal Oversimplification: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Child Protection story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that A 2004 Department of Education study conducted by Dr. Charol Shakeshaft found that nearly 10% of students reported at least one incident of employee sexual misconduct during K-12 schooling?
How does this story connect Child Protection with Institutional Failure over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/21/opinion/la-teachers-union-tries-fails-to-defend-ac…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 5 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 90% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Name Calling / Labeling 85% confidence

Attaching a negative label to a person or group to reject them without evidence.

Why it matters: Recognizing name calling / labeling helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Causal Oversimplification 75% confidence

Assuming a single cause for a complex issue.

Why it matters: Recognizing causal oversimplification helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Appeal to Anger 80% confidence

Provoking outrage to bypass rational evaluation of an argument.

Why it matters: Recognizing appeal to anger helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Ad Hominem 80% confidence

Attacking the person making the argument rather than the argument itself.

Why it matters: Recognizing ad hominem helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 14 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 6

schedule Pending 4

verified Verified By Reference 2

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info

Claim 1: “A 2004 Department of Education study conducted by Dr. Charol Shakeshaft found that nearly 10% of students reported at least one incident of employee sexual misconduct during K-12 schooling.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for '2004' provide general historical events (tsunami, Olympics) but do not mention Dr. Charol Shakeshaft or a Department of Education study on sexual misconduct.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The final days of 2004 were defined by a magnitude 9.1 earthquake that struck Indonesia and affected countries across the Indian Ocean, killing approximately 230,000 people. The 2004 Summer Olympics w…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Dec 20, 2023 · 50 Pop Culture Moments From 20 Years Ago That Make 2004 Feel Like It Was A Whole Different Universe The year that gave us LiveStrong bracelets, Facebook, and Vote For Pedro T-shirts.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/briangalindo/things-that-happened-i…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 2004: Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
https://www.history.com/a-year-in-history/2004

verified

Claim 2: “In 2009, a substitute teacher at the school, Jesus Saenz, was convicted of unlawful sex with a minor.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided search results for 'Jesus Saenz' are irrelevant, returning general information about Jesus Christ and unrelated figures. No evidence regarding a substitute teacher named Jesus Saenz was found.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician, businessman, and former United States Air Force officer who was the 43rd president of the United States, serving from 2001 to 2009. Th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Palmarian Catholic Church (Spanish: Iglesia Católica Palmariana), officially registered as the Palmarian Christian Church and also known as the Palmarian Church, is a Christian church with an epis…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmarian_Catholic_Church

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Richard Serra (November 2, 1938 – March 26, 2024) was an American artist known for his large-scale abstract sculptures made for site-specific landscape, urban, and architectural settings, and whose wo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Serra

+ 3 more evidence sources

help

Claim 3: “These complaints appear to begin as early as the 1980–1981 school year and continued until 2012, when his disgusting photos of students were uncovered. To date, more than 100 victims have come forward.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided or found for this claim.

help

Claim 4: “Steve Rooney was transferred out of Fremont High School to a middle school in Watts after he was investigated for having sex with an underage student. Once at Markham Middle School in Watts, Rooney molested a student.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided or found for this claim.

info

Claim 5: “A more recent 2023 study found that 17% of students reported educator sexual misconduct, with 8% reporting physical sexual conduct.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results mention various studies on educator misconduct (e.g., a Belgian study, a Madison County report), but none match the specific 2023 study statistics (17% and 8%) cited in the claim.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — a Belgian study published in the journal Food Additives and Contaminants.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19440049.2023.2…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The AAUW found that students reported having experienced educator sexual misconduct as follows: 9.6 percent, all types of misconduct.
https://www.theintelligencer.com/news/article/edwardsville-h…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The student reported that they had been dating for two months and had sex several times (Thompson, 2009). 4. A former coach from Upshur County schools received two consecutive 15-year terms after plea…
https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc33204/m2/1/…

info

Claim 6: “Mark Berndt was a teacher at LAUSD’s Miramonte Elementary School from 1976 until 2011.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for 'Mark Berndt' are irrelevant, returning information about the Gospel of Mark and typographical symbols.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Typographical symbols and punctuation marks are marks and symbols used in typography with a variety of purposes such as to help with legibility and accessibility, or to identify special cases. This li…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_typographical_symbol…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Mark 1:40 The Greek word traditionally translated leprosy was used for various diseases affecting the skin.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+1&version=…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — As to Christ's temptation, Mark notices his being in the wilderness and that he was with the wild beasts. It was an instance of his Father's care of him, which encouraged him the more that his Father …
https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Mark-Chapter-1/

info

Claim 7: “Angulo and Sotomayor also ended up pleading guilty to failing to report. They are both still employed by LAUSD.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general information about Jesus Christ and is completely irrelevant to the individuals named Angulo and Sotomayor.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Most Christians consider Jesus to be the incarnation of God the Son and the awaited messiah, or Christ, a descendant of the Davidic line prophesied in the Old Testament. Accounts of Jesus's life are c…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — May 11, 2026 · Jesus of Nazareth, a historical figure revered by Christians as the Son of God, is known for his profound teachings and alleged miracles, sparking curiosity about his life and impact on…
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jesus

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Jul 11, 2016 · 'The Life of Jesus' is a story told by one of his closest friends. Discover now how Jesus changed the course of history in this movie about his life, adapted from the Gospel of John in …
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mgUPt2KI08

schedule

Claim 8: “The state’s commission on teacher credentialing’s “sanction” was merely a seven-day license suspension”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 9: “Its president, Randi Weingarten, said, “Unfortunately, mandatory reporting often places educators in the difficult position of accidentally catalyzing harm, rather than helping.””

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 10: “David Ostovich sexually molested three elementary school students at Langdon Avenue Elementary School even after he received dozens of complaints for his inappropriate behavior at a previous school in LA.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for 'David' are irrelevant, returning information about King David from the Bible and a bioinformatics tool (DAVID), with no mention of a person named David Ostovich.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — David is honored as an ideal king and the forefather of the future Hebrew Messiah in Jewish prophetic literature, and many psalms are attributed to him. David is also richly represented in post-biblic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Dec 31, 2025 · DAVID provides a comprehensive set of functional annotation tools to help understand the biological meaning behind large gene lists. Powered by the DAVID Knowledgebase, it integrates mu…
https://davidbioinformatics.nih.gov/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Dec 19, 2025 · From the songs of his mother’s heart to the whispers of a faithful God, David’s story begins in quiet devotion. When the giant Goliath rises to terrorize a nation, a young shepherd arme…
https://www.angel.com/movies/david

verified

Claim 11: “Just look at South Gate High School, a school in South LA whose student body is 92% low-income and nearly 100% minority.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While Wikipedia and web results confirm the existence and location of South Gate High School, none of the provided evidence contains demographic data regarding the percentage of low-income or minority students.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — South East High School is a comprehensive four-year high school located in the southeast area of South Gate, California. The school is located in the Los Angeles Unified School District and serves gra…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_East_High_School_(South_…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — South Gate is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, with 7.4 square miles (19 km2). It is located 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. South Gate is part of the Gatewa…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Gate,_California

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — South Gate High School is a 9–12 high school in South Gate, California, United States and is part of the Los Angeles Unified School District.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Gate_High_School

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 12: “The American Federation of Teachers, which has UTLA as a member, is on record opposing mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse by teachers.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 13: “The principal and assistant principal, Jesus Angulo and Maria Sotomayor, respectively, in turn allegedly told the victim to recant her statement and decline to report the incident, according to a civil lawsuit.”

SINGLE SOURCE

One web search result mentions a claim by 'Barraza' that a victim recanted after speaking with a principal and assistant principal, but the evidence does not explicitly name Jesus Angulo or Maria Sotomayor in that specific snippet, nor does it provide a full lawsuit confirmation.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — South East High School is part of the South Gate Education Gateway, which is composed of all the schools located on the old General Motors site. The school was known as Southeast Area New High School …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_East_High_School_(South_…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — She said she recanted earlier because “after speaking with the principal and assistant principal she became afraid to go forward with her allegations,” according to Barraza’s claim.
https://witnessla.com/who-do-you-have-to-screw-to-get-fired-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A former Virginia assistant principal is on trial on felony child neglect charges after prosecutors say she ignored warnings that a 6-year-old student had a loaded gun before the child…
https://seniormania.com/former-virginia-assistant-principal-…

schedule

Claim 14: “ProPublica reported how a teacher, Jason Agan, continues to work in a California school despite being fired in 2019 from another school after 11 students and a parent submitted written complaints accusing him of unwanted touching.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.