Last updated February 9, 2017 at 9:15 p.m.
Photo: Megan Wood/KPBS
The Superintendent of the San Ysidro School District hired a woman he was in a relationship with and later retaliated against an employee that warned him about the potential conflict of interest in hiring her.
Dr. Julio Fonseca, 41, became the Superintendent in June 2015 after the District’s former leader, Manuel Paul, was indicted in a wide-ranging corruption scandal that lead to the conviction of 15 other defendants. Paul pled guilty to accepting cash from a prospective contractor and was sentenced to 60 days in federal custody.
For Fonseca, who previously served as Assistant Superintendent at Bassett Unified School District in Los Angeles County, the position at San Ysidro is his first assignment
Taxpayer Group Sues County Schools Chief
By Eduardo Rueda – Investigative Reporter
The California Taxpayers Action Network (CalTAN) has filed a lawsuit against San Diego County Board of Education Superintendent Randy Ward and Assistant Superintendent Lora Duzyk, alleging the schools chief rigged the process to allow himself to approve his and Duzyk’s salary increases without performance reviews, including a recent raise they took last week on July 1st.
CalTAN filed its lawsuit Thursday, July 7th, and immediately issued a “Request for Preservation of Evidence for Use in Litigation” asking the SDCOE to “
take all steps necessary to preserve any and all information” including “
By Eduardo Rueda / Investigative Reporter
For the second time in two months, a San Ysidro Superintendent has resigned amid allegations of wrongdoing in a district that has already seen a former Superintendent convicted and sentenced to prison time.
Jose Arturo Sanchez-Macias, who had served as Interim Superintendent since Sept. 2, resigned at a special meeting of the San Ysidro school board on Friday night after a five-hour closed door discussion among the Board and its lawyer.
“The San Ysidro School Board has unanimously accepted the resignation of Mr. Jose Arturo Sanchez-Macias as Interim Superintendent effective immediately,” Board member Marcos Diaz said, after Board President Rosaleah Pallasigue appeared visibly shaken and was unable to announce the decision herself.
Mario A. Cortez | La Prensa San Diego
The San Ysidro School District is in settlement negotiations with a female employee that made sexual harassment allegations against former Superintendent Julio Fonseca.
Settlement talks are ongoing with Alexis Rodriguez, an employee that was involved in a personal relationship with Fonseca when they both worked at the District.
Fonseca resigned abruptly in October 2017 after Rodriguez’s allegations came to light. Although Board members were aware of the allegations, they voted unanimously to grant Fonseca a nearly $400,000 severance package when he resigned.
Fonseca had pushed to hire Rodriguez in November 2015, and the Board ratified her employment at its December 10, 2015 meeting.
Seven Mile Casino Reopens With Conditions
By Eduardo Rueda, Investigative Reporter
Chula Vista’s Seven Mile Casino reopened Tuesday night with a new manager after being shut down on December 9 in an early morning raid by the FBI, IRS, and State gaming officials.
The casino, along with the Palomar Card Club in San Diego, was closed by an emergency order from the California Bureau of Gambling Control. The closure came on the day indictments were unsealed against 25 individuals connected to a wide-ranging money laundering investigation. Seven Mile Casino, and its owner, Harvey Souza, are accused of failing to maintain anti-money laundering programs.