Santa Maria official fired

SANTA MARIA - Schools Superintendent Homer Garcia on Wednesday fired the district's longtime transportation director after he was accused of using an office computer to view pornography, school board President Rambaldo Rivera said.

Garcia fired Aurelio Medrano a day after he was suspended with pay, Rivera said.

Tuesday, Garcia said district officials would further investigate the case before they would decide Medrano's fate.

"Based on the evidence, it was in the best interest of the district to terminate our director immediately," Rivera said.

In an April 11 report, technology coordinator Saul Rodriguez stated a filtering system detected pornography in an office computer, Garcia said in a Tuesday interview.

Medrano was accused of "downloading and viewing pornographic material," Garcia said.

Some residents blamed district officials for failing to fire Medrano earlier, Rivera said.

"The allegations need to be dealt with carefully," Rivera said. "In all cases, you have to look at both parties."

Medrano had worked for the district about 15 years, Garcia said.