Photos Lead to Former South LA Teacher's Arrest on
Molestation Charges
Technicians at a film processing
business reported the images to authorities
Feb 8, 2012
A
former South Los Angeles elementary school teacher was arrested after an
investigation that began when a film processor provided authorities with nearly
40 photographs that depicted blindfolded children in a classroom with tape over
their mouths.
Mark
Berndt with his arm around the children or a hand over their mouths, according
to authorities. California State Penal Code requires film processors to report
suspected child abuse.
Berndt
worked for more than 30 years at Miramonte Elementary School, but was fired
shortly after the investigation began about one year ago, according to the LA
County Sheriff's Department. The 61-year-old man was arrested Monday at his
Torrance home.
He
remained jailed on $2.3 million bond. He is accused of felony molestation
involving 23 children ages 7 to 10 years old.
"I
am sickened and horrified by the behavior of Mark Berndt,'' said LAUSD
Superintendent John Deasy. "This individual and his conduct do not reflect
on the quality of the teachers who work so hard on behalf of the students
in the Los Angeles Unified School District."
An
arraignment date had not yet been set, but Berndt could make his first
court appearance Wednesday in Norwalk, according to sheriff's officials.
The
crimes were committed between 2008 and 2010, according to sheriff's
investigators.
The photos were taken during after-school programs for which the teacher
volunteered, said the school's principal.
It
wasn't until after Berndt dropped off the film at a South Bay photo lab, where technicians
discovered the images and notified authorities, that the investigation was
opened.
Berndt
is seen in the photos, and a statement from the sheriff's department noted that
"the photographs depicted girls with what appeared to be a blue plastic spoon,
filled with an unknown clear/white liquid substance, up to their mouths as if
they were going to ingest the substance. There are also photos of children with
large live Madagascar-type cockroaches on their faces and mouths."
Investigators
recovered a blue plastic spoon and empty container from the trash in the
suspect's classroom. The items tested positive for semen, according to the
sheriff's department.
"We
ended up finding out through DNA that the white substance was bodily fluids
from our suspect," said Lt. Carlos Marquez.
About
100 similar photos were found at Berndt's home, according to the sheriff's
department. About 250 additional photos were recovered by Sheriff's Special
Victims Bureau detectives from the film processing business.
Not
all of the subjects in the photos have not been identified. Contact Sheriff's
Special Victims Bureau investigators at 877-710-5273 or specialvictims@lasd.org
with information about the crimes.
It is my belief that the battle against the homosexual community has been lost.
Unfortunately most people are about 15 years to late to win this fight; plus
most people are not willing to take the fight to that segment of society.
What follows is a letter I sent to SEAMEC a gay/lesbian
organization here in Seattle. Also enclosed are a couple articles written by
others over the years. If you wish to see how
pervasive it is check the web, start out at Log Cabin Republicans. After that
just type in the words gay and or lesbian.
To SEAMEC,
It appears that individuals on the extreme right want to make life’s
decisions for the masses, while the individuals on the extreme left want
someone other then the decision maker to pay for the consequences of their
decisions. Just as you or I do not support your tax dollars being sent to
churches to pay for programs you do not seem to support, it is not fair to
expect taxpayers who have a religious affiliation to be forced to support
homosexuality through confiscation of their tax dollars.
Sometimes a problem has to be taken to its lowest common denominator.
The same-sex act is different. In a normal “sex-act” the penis of a male is
inserted into the vagina of a female. A male inserting his penis into the anus
of another male or for that matter a female is not (for most people) a normal
sex-act. A female strapping on an imitation penis and inserting it into another
female vagina and or anus is also not normal (to most people).
Let me state, what two or more consenting adults do in the privacy of
their own home is their business. In most cases, over the course of time (but
not always) when a penis is inserted into a vagina the result is the conception
of a child. However, if a male inserts his penis into a female anus this will
not work (not possible to create child). If a male inserts his penis into
another male rectum it still will not result in the formation of a child. Lastly,
if a female straps on an imitation penis and inserts it into another female
vagina (unless the imitation penis comes pre-loaded with sperm) or rectum the
formation of life is still impossible. Again what two or more consenting adults
wish to do in the privacy of their own home is their business.
Marriage is a commitment to lifelong partnership and caring. It is also
about kids and grandkids, about aunts, uncles and grandparents. The homosexual
would not have a partner to care for were it not for male and female
copulation. Immediate family is only possible in nature by a male penis being
inserted into a female vagina. It does not work with humans any other way in
nature. I have drawn the line when it comes to the idea that schools, (we are
talking about a system that exhibits an impaired ability to carry out basic
instruction in reading, writing and arithmetic) are going to teach children
that a man inserting his penis into a rectum is O.K. or normal. That a fist
being shoved up the anus of a male or female is acceptable, or for a female to
strap on a penis and play with her “girl toy” is all right. Let me reiterate,
what two or more consenting adults with to do in their own home is their
business.
A child in a loving family is always better off then a child living with
abuse. But children can not have two mommies or two daddies! It is biologically
impossible. The child’s mother or father might be living an alternate
lifestyle. Since a child can have neither two mothers nor two fathers said
child must be living with its’ mother and her “friend” or its’ father and his
“friend”. Somehow in this era of political correctness, this fact has been
tossed out the window. I do have a problem with men bedding boys (North
America Man Boy Love Association N. A. M. B. L. A.) that is a crime, which
unfortunately no Gay or Lesbian group has spoken out about.
Concerning my outlook on religion, the Old Testament condemns
homosexuality. It also condemns rape, lying, murder, theft, and adultery to
mention but a few items, and gives their corresponding punishments. The New
Testament teaches that he who is without sin can throw the first stone. The
last perfect person, who could have thrown that stone, but did not, got hung
from a cross. It teaches about a man named Jesus and what He stood for.
What two or more consenting adults do in the privacy of their own home
is their business. Whatever diseases are contracted should be their problem;
not the taxpayers.