A former cheerleading coach in California has been found guilty of abusing young girls. Erick Joseph Kristianson, 46, was convicted on December 15 in Santa Ana.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office said that Kristianson was found guilty of 23 felony counts. These charges include lewd acts upon a minor under 14, lewd acts upon a child age 14 or 15, sexual penetration by a foreign object of a minor under 18 and sexual penetration by a foreign object of a minor under 16.
Prosecutors said Kristianson abused ten girls in Orange County between 2002 and 2006. At the time, he worked as a cheerleading coach for Magic All-Stars, an assistant cheer coach at Trabuco Hills High School, and a counselor at a YMCA camp. The girls were between 9 and 16 years old. Some of the girls said they quit cheerleading because of the abuse but were too scared to speak up then.
Many of the victims came forward in 2022 after Kristianson was arrested in Florida. He was suspected of exposing himself to three children and touching another young girl. These children were his students at a cheer club where he was coaching.
After news of the Florida arrest spread, one of Kristianson’s victims in Orange County contacted investigators. She said Kristianson started abusing her when she was 14 years old. She said he would meet her during lunch and take her to his home or the beach, where the abuse continued.
Kristianson was arrested in North Dakota in 2023 and brought back to California to face charges. He had also been arrested in Kansas in 2022 for exposing himself to teenage girls on a video call.
Kristianson is scheduled to be sentenced on March 19, 2026, in Santa Ana. He could face 165 years to life in prison.
