Real-World Cases
Crescenta Valley High School Aide Arrested After Student Reports Messages
Alex E. Cunny
3
min read
Los Angeles County deputies arrested a contract student aide at Crescenta Valley High School. Here’s what former Glendale Unified students can do.
Alex E. Cunny
Alex has dedicated his career to advocating for survivors of sexual abuse and holding perpetrators and the institutions that protected them accountable. With more than twelve years of experience, he has helped recover over $1 billion and represented hundreds of survivors in some of California’s most significant sexual assault cases, including the Larry Nassar, UCLA, USC, and Northern California Clergy cases. Alex has tried cases, secured seven-figure verdicts, resolved matters in the eight- and nine-figure range, and litigated against schools, youth organizations, governing bodies, religious institutions, and individual perpetrators. His work is driven by a commitment to justice, accountability, and giving a voice to survivors who have suffered in silence.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has arrested a student aide who worked at Crescenta Valley High School in La Crescenta, according to NBC Los Angeles and Crescenta Valley Weekly.
What deputies say happened
According to the sheriff’s department, a student told a school administrator on October 22 about text messages the student had received from the aide. A school resource deputy opened an investigation, and deputies from the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station arrested the aide on October 26.
The sheriff’s department identified the man as Oscar Urrutúa Zelaya, 22, of Los Angeles. He was arrested on suspicion of annoying or molesting a child under 18, Crescenta Valley Weekly reported, citing Penal Code section 647.6. Investigators allege he sent inappropriate messages to a minor student. He has not been convicted of any crime, and the allegations have not been proven in court.
Crescenta Valley High School is part of the Glendale Unified School District. Reports say the aide was not a district employee. He worked for an outside agency that places aides in schools. Deputies say his access to the campus has been revoked.
The sheriff’s Detective Bureau is still investigating. Captain Ryan Vienna asked parents to talk with their children about whether anyone else may have been affected. Anyone with information can call Detective Ponce at the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station at (818) 236-4015.
Why this matters for former students
Cases like this one often lead people to think back on their own school years. Some former students realize for the first time that what an adult at school did to them was abuse, or that the school may have missed warning signs. Abuse by school staff, contractors, or volunteers is never the student’s fault, no matter how long ago it happened.
What former students can do
If you were sexually abused by a teacher, aide, coach, or other adult at a California public school, you may have legal options against the school district.
You can bring a case against a California school district any time before your 40th birthday, and you do not have to file a government claim first.
If the abuse happened on or after January 1, 2024, there is no deadline.
If you are 40 or older, different and stricter rules apply, so talk to a lawyer promptly.
Talking with a lawyer is confidential, and you decide whether to take any next step.
Talk with us
LMMB Law represents survivors of childhood sexual abuse in California public schools. Start a confidential review or call (855) 359-1772.
Sources:
NBC Los Angeles, October 26, 2026; Crescenta Valley Weekly, October 26, 2026; KTLA, October 27, 2026.
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