Former Band Camp Coach Charged in Child Annoyance Case

Criminal charges have been brought against a former high school band camp instructor who in November was arrested on suspicion of alleged inappropriate actions with a 15-year-old member of the Vista Murrieta Golden Alliance Marching Band.

The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office on Monday charged Garrett Bayly Karlin, 24, with three misdemeanor counts of annoying and molesting a child, court records indicated.

Karlin was initially jailed on suspicion of 20 counts of sexual battery, 20 counts of annoying or molesting a child and one count of distributing harmful matter to a minor, Murrieta police said about his Nov. 20 arrest.

“Karlin was a part-time employee of the Murrieta Valley Unified School District and he worked for a short time during the summers as a band camp coach with the Vista Murrieta High School band,” said Murrieta police Sgt. Phil Gomez, in a news release following Karlin’s arrest.

Gomez alleged Karlin “developed a personal friendship with the 15-year-old band member victim which lasted for over a year and led to Karlin’s employment as the victim’s private music teacher. Investigation revealed that the inappropriate actions took place off campus and outside of school activities.”

Murrieta police detectives submitted the case to the DA’s office, which then weighed the evidence presented.

“In general, what a person is arrested on suspicion of sometimes does not end up being what they may be charged with after we review the evidence,” said John Hall, spokesperson for the DA’s office. “We charge based on the evidence we review and the best way we believe to move forward with the case.”

The official DA complaint filed with the court alleges that during May to September of 2012, Karlin did “willfully annoy and molest John Doe, a child under the age of 18.”

Karlin is scheduled to be arraigned on the misdemeanor charges Jan. 17.

Karlin, who had remained involved with the band since graduating from Vista Murrieta in 2007, was home from college on Thanksgiving Break when he was arrested. He posted $35,000 and was released from jail the following day.

His attorney, Victor Pippins, who spoke with Patch in November, could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.

Pippins previously told Patch his client "absolutely" denies any inappropriate contact with the minor or any other minors.