L.A. Unified payouts reach $200 million in Mark Berndt student abuse claims after latest settlement
Key takeaways
- The alleged victims were third, fourth and fifth graders in Berndt’s classroom at Miramonte Elementary School between 1988 and 2011.
- “Fourteen years later, victims are still coming forward, and that is remarkable,” said attorney Morgan Stewart. “The red flags were obvious here, and we are seeing more cases where the reports are ignored.”
- The litigation, he said, will give the victims some degree of the accountability they seek.
Former Los Angeles Miramonte Elementary School teacher Mark Berndt, 62, right, sits with his attorney in Los Angeles County Superior Court Nov. 15, 2013. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times) By Richard Winton Staff Writer Follow April 30, 2026 3:21 PM PT 1 4 min Click here to listen to this article Share via Close extra sharing options Email Facebook X Linked In Threads Reddit Whats App Copy Link URL Copied! Print 0:00 0:00 1x This is read by an automated voice. Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.
The Los Angeles Unified School District has agreed to pay $30.5 million to 19 more students who said they were victims of Mark Berndt, a convicted serial child molester, bringing the amount the district has paid out in connection with his crimes to more than $200 million, attorneys said Thursday.
The alleged victims were third, fourth and fifth graders in Berndt’s classroom at Miramonte Elementary School between 1988 and 2011. The lawsuits allege that they were sexually harassed, abused and molested on multiple occasions, and in an infamous incident, some were fed cookies containing his semen. Berndt was arrested in 2012 and is serving a 25-year prison sentence for sex crimes involving students.