High School Theatre Employee convicted for texting illicit images to students

by Chris Peterson, OnStage Blog Founder

TW; Story contains details of cyber sexual abuse

A former high school theatre technical specialist is headed to jail after pleading guilty to texting illicit images to his students. Thomas Charles Ballas, who worked at Westlake High School in CA, was sentenced last month to one year in Ventura County Jail and is required to register as a sex offender, the Ventura County district attorney’s office said. Ballas plead guilty to two felony counts of sending sexually explicit content to a minor.

An investigation began into Ballas after a student reported that he was sending explicit photos of himself through the social media app Snapchat. In screenshots of the conversation, Ballas and the victim discuss the fact that the victim is underage, the DA said.

Ballas was arrested in Dec 2022 and initially pleaded not guilty. In addition to the not-guilty plea, he denied special allegations that the victim was vulnerable and that he took advantage of a position of trust.

Further investigation by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office revealed a possible second victim. Detectives contacted the second victim, who confirmed that she, too, had received explicit photos of Ballas when she was in high school. He was fired by Conejo Valley Unified School District upon his arrest.

Thomas Charles Ballas

Deputy District Attorney Michael Kern, a member of the Ventura County DA sexual assault unit, prosecuted the case.

“By ingratiating himself to them, he created a scenario in which he could engage in inappropriate sexual conversations and behaviors,” Kern told local news.

“The conduct of this former school employee should serve as a sobering reminder to parents about their children’s internet safety. I hope that this case will create opportunities for parents to speak openly to their children about the perils and pitfalls of social media.”