Nearly nine months after a parent reported him and he was placed on administrative leave, a former classroom instructional assistant at Sunset Preschool in San Ysidro was charged with two criminal counts involving a child at the facility.
A complaint was filed Friday against 23-year-old Jaime Godinez, who is accused of lewd and lascivious acts on the pre-schooler on Jan. 15. School officials say he was prevented from returning to Sunset Elementary School on Sunset Lane the following day, when the investigation began. According to the San Ysidro School District, which sent a statement to NBC 7 on Friday regarding the allegations, Godinez was arrested on July 23.
“The employee is on unpaid administrative leave and the district is moving forward with termination,” the statement said, in part, adding, “Our district has strict safety protocols in place, including fingerprinting and background checks for all employees, mandatory student safety training and strict supervision policy requiring multiple staff members to monitor preschool students at all times. We want to assure all families that we take this matter very seriously and remain unwavering in our commitment to protect every student in our care.”
Two weeks after the initial report, a licensing program analyst went to the preschool, where there were 34 children and 6 staffers at the time of the inspection.
“Based on the forensic interview, [Godinez’s] inconsistent statements, law enforcement investigation and lab results, there was evidence found inside [the child’s] garment, and as a result, [Gardinez] was placed under arrest,” states a facility report by the state Health and Human Services Agency filed with the district on Aug. 29. “The preponderence of evidence standard has been met to support the personal rights violation.”
The suspect was first hired as a “classified substitute in various positions” on March 23, 2022, the school district said. His employment status changed the following January, when he was hired as an instructional aide for online learning, and, that July, he was assigned to the Smythe Child Development Center before being transferred to Sunset Preschool a year later.
Roxane Palestino’s daughters went to preschool at the Smythe Child Development Center while Godinez worked there.
“How many more students or children under his care were affected? It’s been three years, and now finally this comes to light,” the parent said.
That seems to be the question driving Palestino’s frustration and discontent of other parents in the district.
“They just don’t tell us anything. They expect us to stay quiet,” Palestino said. “This person was put. … They gave him too much trust. There wasn’t a teacher for a while. He was alone with the kids, and that is how he got away with it.”
Godinez is due back in court on Oct. 8.
NBC 7’s Dave Summers contributed to this report.
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