Full Breakdown
California Board Vote to Rehire a Former Coach Sparks Abuse Scandal Amid Congressional Campaign
8/25/2026, 9:56:37 PM
Election Race and Board Role
Randy Villegas, a Democrat on the Visalia Unified School District board, is the party’s nominee for the U.S. House seat currently held by Republican Congressman David Valadao. The district is considered a competitive “toss-up” in the upcoming election. Villegas’s campaign emphasizes transparency, and he has previously defended a board decision to allocate nearly $14 million in settlements to five abuse victims, including roughly $12 million for two victims of a former employee, according to reporting by the Los Angeles Times.
Vote to Rehire Dejaun Jones
On October 11, 2022, Villegas voted “aye” at a board meeting that approved the hiring of Dejaun Jones as campus supervisor at Mt. Whitney High School. Jones, 40, had been terminated by the district in 2013 after police investigated him for sending inappropriate text messages to a student-athlete while serving as the girls’ track coach at the same school. He had also faced police scrutiny for similar conduct at another high school. A classified personnel report and a human-resources memo noted the position as a replacement but omitted any reference to Jones’s prior misconduct.
Abuse Charges and Sentencing
Six months after the hiring vote, police arrested Jones for molesting a 15-year-old student and for receiving explicit content from that victim. The Tulare County District Attorney’s Office reports that Jones pleaded guilty to all 11 felony counts and received a five-year prison sentence. The attorney representing the two victims described Jones as a “textbook predator” and argued that he should not have been rehired. The district has stated that it follows a comprehensive pre-employment screening process.
Political Fallout
Villegas has denied that the settlement payouts were intended to silence victims, asserting that he stands by his record of public service. His campaign has not responded to inquiries about the hiring decision. The controversy adds a new dimension to the congressional race, raising questions about board oversight and candidate accountability in a district where control of the House could hinge on the outcome.
