REDWOOD CITY – Allegations that a longtime Ravenswood City School District employee molested a student came to light after his wife searched his cellphone and found text exchanges and photos of the student in her underwear, prosecutors said.
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James Edward Fitch, 54, is charged with four counts of lewd acts with a child and one count of contacting a minor to commit a felony, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office. He pleaded not guilty during a court appearance Tuesday.
The Private Defender Program was appointed to represent Fitch in the criminal case.
Fitch, a school district employee since 1996, most recently served as a student relations coordinator at Cesar Chavez Ravenswood Middle School in East Palo Alto.
The alleged crimes happened between June 1, 2023, and Sept. 9, prosecutors said.
According to the district attorney’s office, the student was in the seventh grade when Fitch started pursuing a sexual relationship with her. At one point, he allegedly took her into his office and asked her to have sex with him, prosecutors said.
Fitch allegedly started kissing the student and touching her buttocks, but she told him “no” when he wanted to touch her other private areas, according to the district attorney’s office.
Prosecutors said Fitch allegedly molested the student several times and repeatedly asked her to have sex with him.
Fitch’s wife went through his cellphone while he was sleeping and found text messages he exchanged with the student and pictures of the student in her underwear, according to the district attorney’s office.
Following an investigation by the East Palo Alto Police Department, Fitch was arrested at his home Monday and booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City.
Fitch has been placed on administrative leave, according to Superintendent Gina Sudaria.
“We are deeply saddened for the involved student and their family,” Sudaria said in a statement earlier this week. “We will continue to offer support services and counseling. We will also continue to make ourselves available to assist the police and the district attorney as this case moves forward.”
Fitch is set to appear in court for a preliminary hearing Friday. He is being held on $500,000 bail.