SAN MARCOS — A former swim instructor in North County will face trial in May for the alleged sexual abuse of three young children, the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office confirmed.
During a Feb. 24 hearing in Vista Superior Court, the court scheduled 19-year-old Nicholas Piazza’s jury trial to begin May 15. A readiness hearing will take place April 17 to determine if the prosecution and defense are ready to proceed as scheduled, said District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Tanya Sierra.
Piazza has been in custody at the Vista Detention Center since September 2022, when he was arrested and charged with sexually abusing a 7-year-old child during private swim lessons at a residence in Rancho Santa Fe.
At the time of the arrest, Piazza was already facing a separate charge of child sex abuse from 2021, after allegedly abusing a 6-year-old boy while employed as an instructor at Callan Swim School in San Marcos.
Charges related to those two victims will now be heard in the same trial, along with child sexual abuse charges associated with a five-year-old victim who also recently came forward.
The parent of the first victim is also suing Callan Swim School in a separate civil suit, alleging that the school displayed negligence in continuing to employ Piazza after being made aware of concerning behavior.
A hearing, in that case, has been scheduled for 9 a.m. on March 24 at the Vista courthouse.
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