Former middle school supervisor sentenced to 28 years for molesting girl, 12
The man, now 22, molested a 12-year-old student at Diegueno Middle School in Encinitas, leaving her "a shell of herself," her parents said.
A former campus supervisor who molested a 12-year-old female student at Diegueño Middle School in Encinitas was sentenced Wednesday to 28 years in prison.
Omar Hernandez Galeana, 22, was arrested last year and later pleaded guilty to sex-related charges with a stipulation to the state prison term. He also will have to register as a sex offender.
A statement read in court at Galeana’s sentencing hearing on behalf of the girl’s parents said that though they supported resolving the criminal case, “The truth is, no sentence or amount of prison time can ever restore our child’s innocence and dignity, both of which were stolen by the defendant. Under the guise of campus supervisor, the defendant targeted and groomed our 12- year-old daughter at a place she should have been safe, her middle school.”
The parents said the girl has since become “a shell of herself,” suffering from panic attacks, anxiety and sleeplessness.
“Our daughter routinely questions her self-worth and has openly admitted that she blames herself for what this monster did to her,” the statement read.
Galeana and his defense attorney did not make statements during the hearing. Prosecutors say he also communicated with the girl and other students in an overly familiar fashion, including asking them to delete their text message conversations with him because he could get in trouble.
A lawsuit was filed last year in San Diego Superior Court against Galeana and the San Dieguito Union High School District on behalf of the lead victim in the case.
Attorneys representing the girl say district officials missed “red flags” regarding Galeana’s behavior toward her and other students at the middle school.
He frequently drove the girl and other students in his car, regularly communicated with students via texting and social media applications, and often spent time alone with them in secluded areas of the campus, the lawsuit alleges.
Allowing Galeana to have “solitary and unfettered access to children” provided him the opportunity to sexually abuse the girl both on and off campus, the plaintiffs’ attorneys said.
School officials said at the time that the district “took immediate action to remove him from employment and work cooperatively with law enforcement” once they learned of the allegations.
The civil case is pending.
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