Afterschool Program Leader Denies Forcing Girl, 7, To Take Sexually Explicit Photos

CULVER CITY, CA — A former Culver City employee who ran a recreational program for kids pleaded not guilty Friday to producing sexually explicit photographs of a 7-year-old girl enrolled in the program.

Stephen Michael Martinez, 44, of the Sawtelle neighborhood in Los Angeles, is charged with two counts of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Martinez was indicted by a federal grand jury earlier this month.

Martinez had worked for the city as a senior recreation leader for five years until he was terminated from his position "due to an unrelated matter prior to the report of this crime" on June 26, according to the Culver City Police Department

In that role, he worked as "a caretaker of young children" at the Culver City Afterschool Recreation Program, prosecutors said.

"On July 14, law enforcement learned that Martinez, while working at the Culver City Afterschool Recreation Program, coerced a 7-year-old girl in his care into producing photos depicting the girl engaging in sexually explicit conduct," reads a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.

According to the indictment obtained by Patch, Martinez is accused of producing at least three sexually explicit photos of the girl between January and June.

Additionally, he is accused of possessing an external hard drive that included at least three sexually explicit images of a child under 12, according to the indictment.

He was arrested by Culver City police on July 16 on suspicion of committing lewd and lascivious acts on a minor. He was transferred to federal custody a week later, prosecutors said.

If convicted as charged, Martinez would face a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison and a maximum of 30 years behind bars, prosecutors said.