Stephen Thomas Rooney, 39, an assistant principal at Markham Middle School in Los Angles, California arrested last week on allegations of sexually abusing a 13-year-old female student has pleaded not guilty.

Rooney was charged March 6 with three counts of a forcible lewd act upon a child and two counts of committing a lewd act upon a child. The alleged crimes are said to have occurred between January 1 and March 1 of this year. Two of the charges involve an incident that allegedly took place on the school campus in his office in front of another student.
Rooney’s attorney tried unsuccessfully to get his client’s $1 million bail reduced.
Rooney’s case has angered some Markham parents after they learned that Rooney had been previously investigated for allegedly having sex with an underage student at Fremont High School and pulling a gun on her stepfather. Although no criminal charges were filed in that case he was removed from that school and subsequently assigned to Markham Middle School.
04/28/08 - Additional Charges
Stephen Rooney has now been charged with molesting a second Markham Middle School, a 14-year-old female.
Prosecutors also say they have enough evidence to charge Rooney with the molestation of a 15-year-old girl who was a student at Foshay Learning Center.
05/01/08 - Rooney Ordered To Stand Trial
Yesterday Stephen Rooney was ordered to trial on three counts of forcible lewd acts upon a child, six counts of lewd acts upon a child and four counts of unlawful sexual intercourse in connection with three girls.
One of the girls, who is now 18, testified that she met Rooney around 2005, while she was a student at Foshay Learning Academy. The girl said that she was 15 and first had sex with him in October 2005 during a relationship that lasted about 1½ years and that she became pregnant with Rooney’s baby. The girl testified that she had a miscarriage and subsequently continued the sexual relationship with Rooney.
09/19/08 - Another Victim, Another Set of Charges
Steve Rooney, already facing charges of molesting three students, was arrested again Thursday on charges of molesting a fourth, according to authorities.
In the latest case, Rooney faces five felony charges that he molested a 14-year-old student at the Foshay Learning Center between June 2004 and June 2006.
The new charges will be handled as an entirely different case they Rooney's previous charges and will works its way through the courts after the first case.
Rooney currently free on bond is reportedly expected to be released on $100,000 bond in the newer case.
References:
New molestation charges filed against former assistant principal (09/19/08)
Asst. School Principal Ordered To Stand Trial In Sex-Related Case (05/01/08)
LAUSD administrator faces more sex abuse charges (04/28/08)
Assistant School Principal Pleads Not Guilty to Lewd Acts (3/19/08)
LAUSD Head Deeply Sorry For Administrator Scandal (3/14/08)
L.A. Unified educator in sex case faced earlier inquiry (3/13/08)
Not first accusation for asst. principal (3/13/08)
Assistant Principal Charged With Lewd Acts Involving 13-Year-Old (3/06/08)






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