La Crescenta sleepover abuse case suspect Stephen Nathaniel Risdon has been sentenced to 45 years in prison for sexually abusing three elementary school girls during separate sleepovers at his home, according to the victims’ family.
The mother of one of the victims said on May 12 that Risdon received three consecutive 15-year sentences — one for each victim — during sentencing on May 8.
She added that she hopes the sentence encourages any additional victims to seek help and come forward.
“If there are other victims out there, I hope they know the perpetrator has finally been held accountable,” the mother said. “I hope they can now receive counseling and support.”
Abuse Happened During Elementary School Sleepovers
The abuse took place between 2015 and 2016 in the La Crescenta area, investigators said.
According to the case, the victims were friends of Risdon’s daughter and had been invited to the family’s home for overnight sleepovers. The girls were reportedly in third and fourth grade at the time of the assaults.
The case shocked many in the local Korean American community not only because of the victims’ young age, but also because the abuse allegedly occurred in what families believed was a safe and familiar environment.
Sleepovers — often viewed as a childhood rite of passage — instead became the setting for years of trauma.
Former Faith-Based Worker Sentenced
Risdon had previously earned a master’s degree in divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary and had worked with a Christian nonprofit organization known as the Center for Justice Restoration.
The sentencing marks the end of a case that has haunted the victims’ families for nearly a decade.
For the victims, however, many say the emotional toll lasted far longer than the sentence itself. While the court handed down 45 years in prison, the survivors spent nearly 10 years carrying the trauma in silence.
The family said they hope the ruling sends a message that child sexual abuse cases — even years later — can still lead to accountability and justice.
