The San Francisco Unified School District confirmed today that Apolinar Quesada, the district’s labor relations director, was indicted in July on charges of criminal sexual activity with a minor in New Mexico.
Quesada, 50, is also a former principal and assistant principal at two San Francisco middle schools.
He was indicted on July 20, 2026, by the state of New Mexico on first-degree charges of criminal sexual penetration of a minor under 13, which allegedly occurred between January and February 1995, according to documents obtained from the court clerk of the Grant County District Attorney.
Quesada, who was born in 1976, would have been 18 at the time of the alleged incident.
From Quesada’s one-page July 20 indictment:
Criminal Sexual Penetration in the First Degree (Child Under 13), (7786), between January 1, 1995 and February 28, 1995, in Grant County, the above-named defendant did unlawfully and intentionally cause a child under thirteen (13) years of age to engage in sexual intercourse, cunnilingus, fellatio or anal intercourse or cause penetration, to any extent and with any object, of the genital or anal openings of another, a first degree felony, contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 30-09-11(C)(1) (1993).
The state of New Mexico this year removed any statutes of limitations on alleged sex crimes against children.
Mission Local called a phone number for Quesada provided by an associate. It was disconnected. Mission Local left emails and voice messages for Quesada’s lawyer, Alexandra Wilson Jones, but has not received a response.
SFUSD Head of Staff Hong Mei Pang said Thursday that the district immediately placed Quesada on leave upon learning of the indictment earlier this month, and has started an investigation.
“The alleged acts did not take place in San Francisco, or involve any SFUSD students,” she said. “Student safety is always our top priority and we take these matters very seriously.”
According to his LinkedIn page, Quesada moved to San Francisco in 2011 to take over the role of assistant principal at Marina Middle School. He subsequently became the principal of James Lick Middle School before moving up to the district office.
Quesada, as director of labor relations, is involved in negotiations with the district’s unionized workforce. He played a role in talks with the principals union in December 2025 and the teachers union in 2026, prior to and during the four-day strike.
While the district could not comment on the background checks specifically undertaken on Quesada, Pang noted that “all SFUSD employees” must submit proof of identity, fingerprints, and the “the relevant credentialing and documentation related to their work experience.”
“Our process is aligned with local, state, and federal laws,” she said.
Records, however, show that on Jan. 21, 2004, Quesada voluntarily relinquished his badge as an officer with the Tempe Police Department in Arizona, following undisclosed “miscellaneous” misconduct. At around that time, he began his career as a paraeducator and clerk in the Phoenix area, according to his bio on SFUSD’s website.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Apolinar Quesada has served as the district’s director of labor relations since February 2025. In addition to his time at SFUSD, he was a school principal at two California schools between the years of 2019 and 2025 before returning to SFUSD to take over his current role.
So disturbing. I just took a mandated reporter training. I live in Los Gatos, where an elementary school teacher was looked to as a pillar of the community because he founded a district-wide theater company that almost every kid was involved in. Then he was found to be a molester. He’s now in prison for 30+ years. Nobody said things for years. I’m still haunted by the lack of action by the principal. I think a lot of teachers resigned after that or left the school because it was all so disturbing. I just took a “mandated reporter” training. The whole episode is all the more haunting because he did emotionally abuse boys in his class, yet nobody apparently took significant action at the school.