California assistant principal charged with molesting 8 elementary school children

David Lane Braff Jr., 42, was charged Friday with 17 counts of "lewd acts" on children under the age of 14. The alleged abuse occurred between 2015 and 2019 while Braff was employed as a counselor at McKevett Elementary School in Santa Paula. At the time of his arrest, Braff was serving as an assistant principal at Ingenium Charter Middle School in Los Angeles.

According to a release by the Ventura County District Attorney's Office, Braff is “accused of a number of special allegations and aggravating factors in the criminal complaint, including that the crimes involved planning and sophistication and that the children entrusted to the defendant’s care were particularly vulnerable.”

"The defendant is alleged to have molested multiple elementary school children over a number of years, shattering the trust placed in him by parents, educators, and the public,” said District Attorney Erik Nasarenko.

“We intend to vigorously prosecute this case and encourage others to come forward who may have information about additional victims and crimes," he continued. "Given the defendant’s history of re-occurring access to children, this investigation and prosecution remains ongoing.”

During the time period when he carried out the alleged abuse, Braff is also believed to have volunteered with youth-based organizations. Braff is currently being held at Ventura County Jail on $3 million bail. He is scheduled to appear in Ventura County Superior Court on Monday.

According to People, the Santa Paula Unified School District released a statement saying it was “aware of the recent arrest of a former employee regarding allegations of sexual abuse that occurred while the individual was employed with the District in 2018.”

“At the time of the allegations, the District took immediate action by launching an internal investigation and working in close collaboration with law enforcement," the statement explained. "The District remains fully committed to transparency and accountability and is continuing to cooperate with the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office in its current proceedings.”