Founder of shuttered Lancaster charter school charged with embezzling $150,000+ in public funds

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Headline graphic: $150K school funds, over a file photo of The BLVD in downtown Lancaster

Cover photo: File photo (The BLVD, Lancaster, 2014; not connected to the case) by Joseph Michael Reyes, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped, darkened and text added by The Southbound 105.

By Alberto Zamudio | The Southbound 105 | Oct. 11, 2026

LANCASTER — The man who founded and ran a short-lived Antelope Valley charter school is charged with draining more than $150,000 in public money from the school's bank account in the months before and just after it opened its doors to about 100 children.

Derrick Devaul Spiva, 64, of Lancaster, faces five felony counts: misappropriation of public funds, embezzlement of public funds, grand theft, money laundering and conflict of interest, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced. Prosecutors also allege an aggravated white-collar crime sentencing enhancement. The case number is 26CJCF06132.

Eight months from approval to closure

According to prosecutors, Spiva petitioned the Antelope Valley Union High School District board in February 2023 to open the Synergy School of Arts and Technology, pitched as a "first-of-its-kind arts and technology-based transitional kindergarten through 12th-grade charter school in the Antelope Valley." The district approved the charter in April 2023, and in May the school's nonprofit board hired Spiva as executive director.

Between June 28 and Oct. 13, 2023, Spiva allegedly made unauthorized payments from Synergy's account to himself, his business and his domestic partner, spending some of the money on travel, theater tickets and electronic devices, the DA's office said.

Synergy opened in September 2023 with about 100 students on two Lancaster campuses. After it opened, the school discovered the missing money. The board fired Spiva in November 2023, and the school shut down in December, leaving families to find new schools in the middle of the year.

"Unconscionable"

"Stealing public money meant to educate children is unconscionable," District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement. He said the alleged sequence of events showed "a brazen disregard" for the high school district, its students "and the entire system of public education," and that his Public Integrity Division would seek to hold Spiva fully accountable.

The case is being prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Stefan Mrakich of the Public Integrity Division and was investigated by the DA's Bureau of Investigation.

Next court date

Spiva made his first court appearance Sept. 28 and was released on his own recognizance on the condition that he be booked at a local police station and bring proof to his next hearing. His arraignment is set for Nov. 16 in Department 30 of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles. If convicted as charged, he faces up to six years and eight months in state prison.

The charges are allegations. Spiva is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

An arraignment is the hearing where a defendant is formally told of the charges and enters a plea. If Spiva pleads not guilty, the case would move toward a preliminary hearing, where a judge decides whether there is enough evidence for trial. The aggravated white-collar enhancement, which applies to alleged fraud or embezzlement above certain dollar amounts, can add time to a sentence and allows prosecutors to seek to freeze assets for restitution.

Why it matters in the Antelope Valley

California charter schools are publicly funded but run by independent nonprofit boards under a contract with an authorizer, usually a school district. That structure gives founders wide control over spending, and oversight often depends on the charter's own board and annual audits. In Synergy's case, prosecutors say the money was gone within six months of approval, before the school's first semester was over.

The case is likely to renew questions for the Antelope Valley Union High School District about how it vets new charter petitions and monitors start-up finances. Parents of former Synergy students who have information can contact the DA's Bureau of Investigation. The Southbound 105 will follow the case when it returns to court Nov. 16.

Sources

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