Valley College Associate Professor Richard Torquato received a pretrial continuance for the fifth consecutive time at Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday. His next court appearance is March 15.
Torquato is accused of three charges of sexual harassment and has been on leave since the latter part of the Fall 2009 semester.
According to Detective Richard Roberts, who is assigned to the Community College Bureau, Torquato turned himself in to the Van Nuys court as a result of an arrest warrant that was issued Nov. 17, 2009.
"The Sheriff's department acted quickly as did the staff of Valley College," said Roberts on Feb. 25. "The policies in place at Valley College worked well in this situation, and all appropriate actions were taken to ensure safety for the victim as well as the student population. Due to the swift actions of the college in regard to this matter, there was no continuing threat to students in any way once the allegation was made."
Valley Deputy Ricky Baker stated in last week's article in the Valley Star, "Anytime we're arresting somebody, there's probably some danger to the community." Baker also commented, "And yes, the arrest was made here on campus."
Baker clarified Tuesday that Torquato was not arrested on campus by saying, "I think there was miscommunication somewhere along the line." Baker continued, "He [Torquato] was contacted here on campus, that must have been the part I misunderstood."
Valley's Office of Compliance is also investigating the psychology professor.
Vice President of Academic Affairs Sandy Mayo said Tuesday, "We are working very hard to preserve the rights of everyone…we want to do right by everyone." Mayo added, "For every faculty member (we hire) we do background checks and we call and check references."
Torquato appeared in court last Thursday for a pretrial hearing, which, for the fourth time, was continued to March 2 at Los Angeles Superior Court in Van Nuys.
The charges brought against Torquato are violations of Penal Code 243.4(E)(1), which involves sexual battery, Penal Code 647.6(A)(1), which is defined as molestation of any child under 18 years of age, and 273A(B), a charge of willfully causing a child to suffer any physical pain or mental suffering.
Torquato earned his bachelor's degree from Williamette University in Salem, OR and received a master's degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He was hired at Valley in 1999.
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