Former California Teacher Arrested Again in Newport News for Crimes Against Children

Latest charges in Newport News are for crimes committed back in 1991

Pridgen, listed as 6 feet 1 inch tall and 165 pounds, was taken into custody at approximately 5:25 p.m. on November 2, 2026, in the 3300 block of Jefferson Avenue. The arrest was recorded under Newport News Police Department case information tied to the South precinct.

• Name: PRIDGEN, CHAD W. (consistent with Chad Wenzlick Pridgen / Chad W. Pridgen)
• Age: 55
• Physical description: White male, 6 ft 1 in, 165 lbs
• Charge: Indecent liberties with a child under 15
• Date/time/location: Arrested November 2, 2026, at 17:25 near 3300 Jefferson Avenue, Newport News, VA

Public records and prior court coverage identify Chad Wenzlick Pridgen as the same individual who worked as a science teacher and boys’ tennis and soccer coach at Camarillo High School in California in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In 2002 he was charged with multiple counts of sexual misconduct involving 11 teenage boys, most of them his students. He pleaded guilty in November 2002 to 20 felony and misdemeanor counts and was sentenced in July 2003 to 10 years in state prison.

Later public sex-offender registry data listed a Chad Wenzlick Pridgen of matching age and name as a registered offender in Maryland following a 2023 third-degree sex offense conviction.

The new Newport News charge of indecent liberties with a child under 15 is a serious felony under Virginia law. Additional details about the alleged incident, bond status, and any further charges have not yet been released by police. Pridgen is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

The case is the latest chapter in a documented history of child sex offense convictions spanning more than two decades for the former California educator.

Camarillo teacher Chad Pridgen being led from court after his arraignment in a California court

• Offenses: In November 2002, Pridgen pleaded guilty to 20 felony and misdemeanor counts and no contest to three others. The charges involved 11 teenage boys (nine of whom were his students) between 1999 and 2001. The offenses included performing sex acts, providing alcohol, and showing pornography to minors at his home. [1, 2]
• Sentence: On July 1, 2003, Ventura County Superior Court Judge Bruce Clark sentenced Pridgen to 10 years in state prison. The judge rejected his request for probation, noting his failure to take responsibility for his actions

https://casesearch.courts.state.md.us/casesearch/case-detail-page?caseId=C03CR22005619