Prop 8 contributor and church youth leader indicted on child abuse charges
A church youth leader in California who donated money to the anti-marriage equality Proposition 8 campaign has been indicted on charges of child molestation.
Caleb Douglas Hesse, 52, of Yucca Valley, California, was called before a court earlier in August on four felony counts of lewd acts upon a child, as reported by the Wisconsin Gazette.
According to information release by the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s office, Mr Hesse is also to face additional charges.
He had been a first-grade teacher at the Friendly Hills Elementary School from 1987 until recently and was also a youth volunteer with the Evangelical Free Church in Yucca Valley.
During his work at the church, Mr Hesse was allegedly involved in “countless overnight outings” throughout California with his alleged victims, according to investigators.
The county sheriff’s news release said: “The crimes are believed to have occurred between the early 1980s and as recently as one week ago.”
This means that some of Mr Hesse’s alleged victims are now between 30 and 40 years old.
If convicted, he faces up to a maximum sentence of 45 years to life imprisonment.
Mr Hesse pleaded not guilty to the charges.
