Hermosa Man Enters Plea in Court

Claudio X. Pinto, 48, who lived in Hermosa Beach at the time of his arrest in March, pleaded no contest Tuesday to a charge of loitering "about toilet to solicit lewd acts," according to a Torrance court clerk Wednesday.

Pinto is due back in court for sentencing on Dec. 21.

Eighteen men were arrested by Manhattan Beach police in March during surveillance of a public restroom on the beach at Marine Avenue. MBPD was acting in response to a request from L.A. County lifeguards who'd noticed increased pedestrian traffic near the bathrooms, the same people returning, some bathroom visits taking more than an hour, and two and three sets of feet in bathroom stalls, according to Officer Stephanie Martin, MBPD's public information officer.

Earlier this year, William R. Jackson of East Sussex, England, pleaded no contest to engaging in a lewd act. He was ordered to serve one year of probation, according to a Los Angeles County District Attorney's spokeswoman.

Prosecutors declined to file charges against Glen B. Sears of Los Angeles, citing insufficient evidence.