*Update*
According to 23ABC News, court documents stated that Ishida allegedly downloaded females between the ages of five to 10-years-old engaging in sexual conduct with adult men. His computer held over 600 images of minors “engaging in or simulating sexual contact.”
As of Dec. 9, at 2:30 p.m., 23ABC News reported, “The Kern County Central Receiving Facility confirmed that Ishida bailed out of jail Friday night around 10 p.m. He is expected to be in court on December 22nd.”
The Runner met with one of Ishida’s former students to learn more about Ishida as a professor and student reactions to the news.
Nic Shannon is a senior at CSUB and is majoring is psychology.
“I was a student in Dr. Ishida’s mental health and disorders in death and aging course back in 2014,” he said.
Shannon said he visited Ishida during his office hours when he was a student. “I had friends who also went to his office hours for abnormal psych. They said that he would challenge his students to think about how other people like and find pleasure in things that others would consider ‘abnormal,'” he said.
Shannon said he had good experiences with Dr. ishidia. “He was really passionate about the class I took with him, and even brought his mom to class to meet everyone. He was saddened that she has dementia, and is dying and even cried in class. ”
Shannon’s initial reaction to the news was complete shock.
“I’m shocked because he’s been a professor for so long, and he’s well respected in the psych department. I also believe that he’s the president of the psi chi club as well. It’s really unfortunate because there have been so many people who have entrusted him with personally stories of their struggles with being abused. I really hope Justice is served,” he said.
*Update*
As of Friday, Dec. 8, KGET reported CSU Bakersfield assistant professor of psychology, Theodore Ishida, has been arrested and booked on possession child pornography charges. The Bakersfield Police Department has confirmed he is at the Kern County Jail.
The arrest was made after a burglary of Ishida’s home, which later revealed he had downloaded child pornography from CSUB computer and later transferred to his own.
The Office of Public Affairs and Communications released a statement following the arrest of Ishida:
“CSUB took appropriate action once the University was made aware of a Bakersfield Police Department investigation of Dr. Ishida in January 2017. Since that time, Dr. Ishida has been temporarily suspended with pay pending the Bakersfield Police Department’s and the University’s investigation of the matter. Dr. Ishida does not have access to his office or the campus. The University has cooperated with Bakersfield police during the ongoing investigation and will continue to do so.”
Ishida has worked at CSUB since 1988.
Stay tuned for future updates about this story.
