Prosecutors added 31 sex-related counts Thursday against a man who coached wrestling at John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley.
Terry Terrell Gillard, 56, of Sylmar, is now facing a total of 61 counts involving four boys and two girls between the ages of 11 and 14, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Gillard pleaded not guilty to 40 felony counts of lewd acts on a child ages 14 or 15, eight felony counts of attempted lewd acts on a child 14 or 15, three felony counts of lewd acts on a child under 14, two felony counts of oral copulation of a child under 18 and one felony count of sexual battery by restraint.
He is also accused of four misdemeanor counts of child annoying, two misdemeanor counts of attempted unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and one misdemeanor count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.
Most of the alleged crimes occurred between 2014 and 2017 and involved minors Gillard met through the school’s wrestling team, according to Deputy District Attorney Cathy Lee. The felony complaint also includes an alleged victim from 1991.
Gillard was initially charged on June 8 with crimes involving four children.
According to the Los Angeles Unified School District, Gillard worked as a campus aide and also served as the wrestling coach. LAUSD Superintendent Michelle King said shortly after Gillard’s arrest that the district was cooperating with the Los Angeles Police Department and that Gillard was immediately reassigned from the school pending the outcome of the case.
Gillard is due back in a San Fernando courtroom July 27, when a date is scheduled to be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require him to stand trial.
If convicted as charged, Gillard could face more than 50 years in state prison, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
— City News Service