Porterville Teacher Found Guilty of Child Molestation

By Anthony W. Haddad

Published 9 months ago on

September 26, 2024

A teacher at Porterville Military Academy, James Van Norton, 45, was found guilty of 16 felonies involving sexual acts including child molestation. (Tulare County DA)

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James Van Norton, 45, was convicted Thursday of child molestation charges, according to the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office.

A jury found him guilty of three felony counts of unlawful sexual intercourse and 13 felony counts of lewd acts upon a child aged 14.

The offenses occurred between August 2018 and March 2019 against a single victim in Tulare County. At the time, Van Norton was employed as a teacher at the Porterville Military Academy.

Each charge included a special allegation due to his position of trust.

Under California law, he faces up to 14 years and 8 months in state prison and must register as a sex offender for life.

Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 6.

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Anthony W. Haddad,

Multimedia Journalist

Anthony W. Haddad, who graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with his undergraduate degree and attended Fresno State for a MBA, is the Swiss Army knife of GV Wire. He writes stories, manages social media, and represents the organization on the ground.