Detectives Investigating Ex-priest's Conduct with Girl, Then 16

Los Angeles Times
February 6, 2013

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/02/sheriff-probe-priest-sex-girl-16.html

[Joseph Pina - Los Angeles archdiocese]

Los Angeles County sheriff's detectives have launched an investigation of an ex-priest and L.A. school district employee about a sexual relationship he allegedly had with a 16-year-old in the late 1980s, The Times has learned.

The inquiry into the actions of Joseph Pina, 66, may be the first to result from the recent release by the Los Angeles Archdiocese of documents laying out the church’s handling of clergy accused of sexual misconduct.

Pina started working for the Los Angeles Unified School District in 2002, performing community outreach for its school-construction program. The job brought him into frequent contact with families, but no reports of problems in that role have emerged. The construction program is winding down and Pina was working only occasionally in recent months. L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy said he ordered Pina’s dismissal as a result of the recent revelations about his past.

The Los Angeles Police Department also is reviewing church files, looking for new cases or more information about old ones.