A certified nursing assistant who worked at a Southern California group home for severely disabled patients has been sentenced to life in federal prison for committing multiple child exploitation crimes, including filming himself sexually abusing several severely disabled children at the group home facility, while he was working as their nighttime caretaker. Steve Jackson Rodriguez, 38, of Pomona, was sentenced by United States District Judge John W. Holcomb, who said at the hearing that Rodriguez’s crimes constituted “unspeakable acts.” Judge Holcomb scheduled a restitution hearing in this case for March 10.
Rodriguez pleaded guilty in September 2022 to two counts of obtaining custody of a minor for the purposes of producing child pornography, five counts of production of child pornography, and one count of enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity. From January 2016 to May 2020, Rodriguez produced sexually explicit images and videos with four minor victims, three of whom were severely disabled patients being housed at an Inland Empire group home that employed Rodriguez. One of the disabled victims was 8 years old when Rodriguez began filming his illegal sexual conduct — two years after he began abusing this victim.
