Rabbi charged with felony sex abuse pleads not guilty

A rabbi arrested on felony charges of sexual abuse of a child entered a plea of not guilty at his arraignment Nov. 10 at the Airport Courthouse in Los Angeles. Sholom D. Levitansky, 39, of Sherman Oaks arrived at court wearing a suit and yarmulke, flanked by a handful of other men in similar dress, and one woman.

At the arraignment, Judge Keith Schwartz issued two oral orders restricting Levitansky’s behavior while he’s out on $370,000 bail. Schwartz told the rabbi that he’s prohibited from having contact with the two alleged female victims in the case, and that he is also forbidden from any contact in general with females younger than 18 years old.

The only condition Levitansky may make contact with female minors is if there’s another adult present who is aware of the charges against Levitansky. 

“They’re going to watch you to make sure nothing else allegedly happens,” Schwartz said.

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office has charged Levitansky with five counts of oral copulation of a person under 18 years of age, five counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object of a person under 18, and one count of lewd act upon a child.

When the Journal approached Levitansky at the courthouse to ask him about his case, he had no comment. Levitansky has retained a private attorney, Glen Jonas of Torrance-based Jonas & Driscoll; the preliminary hearing for Levitansky’s case has been scheduled for Dec. 16.

The charges against Levitansky are dated, Jonas said in his client’s defense. Any time there’s a delay in  reporting allegations, “the narrative of that accusation needs to be investigated.”

The rabbi was arrested Sept. 30 when he turned himself in to the Santa Monica Police Department. The allegations of abuse against Levitansky took place from 1998 to 2002, when the victims were 15 and 16 years old, and Levitansky was in his mid-20s, according to a statement from Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks. Levitansky met the girls while working at the Living Torah Center on Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica.