Deliberations begin in trial of ex-teacher accused of lewd acts, rape

BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) - Jury deliberations began today in the trial of an ex-substitute teacher from the Coachella Valley accused of perpetrating lewd acts during online contact with a female student, as well as sexually assaulting another woman.  

Edward Noel Alvarado Valadez, 31, of Coachella, was arrested in 2019 following a Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigation.   

Valadez is charged with exhibiting harmful matter to a minor, sexual penetration with a foreign object and annoying a child. He's free on a $10,000 bond.

The prosecution and defense delivered closing arguments at the Banning Justice Center Monday, after which Superior Court Judge Jonathan Mendoza sent jurors behind closed doors to weigh evidence from the nearly weeklong trial.

According to a trial brief filed by the District Attorney's Office, Valadez was a substitute educator for the Coachella Valley Unified School District, and in November 2019, while supervising a special education class at Coachella Valley High School in Thermal, he became acquainted with a teenage girl. 

The youth later told family members that Valadez added himself, without permission, to her social media accounts.   

In the predawn hours of Dec. 1, 2019, the defendant placed a video call to the girl via Snapchat, and she answered. In the ensuing conversation, subjects ranged from smoking marijuana to "how her relationship was going downhill'' with her boyfriend "and her virginity," the brief alleged.  

"The defendant then pulled out his (penis pump) tube and used it to make his `(expletive) bigger and thicker,''' according to the narrative. "The defendant asked her if she wanted to see it in action and asked if it was the biggest she had seen.''   

The girl was immediately uncomfortable and "tried to change the subject,'' but Valadez was allegedly persistent, staying on the same topic until the teenager abruptly ended the call, the brief stated.

The following morning, he allegedly instant-messaged the victim, asking whether she was impressed about ``last night,'' the prosecution said. The girl then went to family and authorities, culminating in sheriff's detectives setting up a recorded ``pretext phone call,'' in which the girl was told to restart the conversation with Valadez to determine whether he would make any admissions.  

During the conversation, the defendant became suspicious, asking the youth to remove him from all her social media contacts because ``they can probably search those things,'' according to court papers.

When he was questioned by investigators on Dec. 5, 2019, Valadez initially evaded questions about the interaction with the girl, suggesting the video images she saw were of another man and that his cousin was the owner of the ``pump,'' according to the prosecution. However, after a search warrant was served at the defendant's residence, the device was seized from his bedroom, prosecutors alleged.  

Valadez was arrested without incident but soon after posted bail.   

He was dismissed from his job at the school district weeks later. He had been employed in the substitute teaching position for about 10 months.   

On March 20, 2021, while awaiting trial for the lewd acts case, Valadez connected with a woman to help her plan a birthday party, according to the brief.

She returned to his apartment, where they played video games and drank alcoholic beverages until 1 a.m. the following morning, prosecutors said. Valadez began to kiss the woman's neck as she started to feel inebriated, prompting her to get up to leave, the brief said.

"The defendant convinced her to stay because she was too intoxicated,'' according to the narrative. "He laid her down on his bed and continued to kiss her neck. She tried to tell the defendant to stop but couldn't push him off because of how intoxicated she was."  

He pulled down her pants, at which point the woman rolled over and vomited on the floor -- which didn't stop Valadez from then grabbing her breast and persist in kissing her, prosecutors alleged.

The brief alleged he penetrated her with his fingers, which she felt before completely passing out.

When the woman awoke four hours later, she discovered she was disrobed from the waist down, while the defendant was resting next to her fully clothed, according to the brief.

After she dressed, Valadez walked her to her vehicle, asking her "if she remembered anything,'' to which she responded no, leading him to advise that if she did recall anything "it was probably in her head,'' the brief said.

The woman conveyed her alleged experiences to law enforcement sometime later, culminating in additional charges being filed against the defendant.  

He has no documented prior felony convictions.

Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing coverage on this case.