The federal probe into LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho has swept up a Florida consultant who had a child with Bob Marley’s legendary guitarist — a son who later became a Hollywood actor.
The woman is Debra Kerr, a Jamaica-born education consultant and a former Miss Jamaica runner-up whose son, David “Davo” Kerr Jr., is a Los Angeles-based rapper and actor. Davo’s father is Junior Marvin, the legendary guitarist for Bob Marley & The Wailers.
Davo appeared in the 2024 biopic “Bob Marley: One Love,” in which he portrayed his own father, Marvin, the guitarist who joined Bob Marley & The Wailers in 1977 after famously turning down an offer to join Stevie Wonder’s band.
The film, directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green and starring Kingsley Ben-Adir as Marley, chronicled the reggae icon’s rise and the recording of the landmark album “Exodus.”
Davo landed the role after reaching out directly to casting, later describing the experience as deeply personal.
Kerr’s LinkedIn profile describes her as CEO of LeadershipMax LLC, a Hollywood, Fla.–based consulting firm she launched in 2017 after leaving corporate America.
She bills herself as a “highly accomplished Sales and Marketing Executive” with focused expertise in the K-12 education industry and experience driving revenue growth and market development.
Before striking out on her own, Kerr held senior roles at education publishing giant Pearson, where she rose to senior vice president for North America, and later served as head of sales at Age of Learning, the company behind ABCmouse, a subscription-based learning program for children ages 2 to 8.
Her résumé highlights responsibility for managing regional sales teams, overseeing government relationships and growing K-12 market share across multiple states.
Junior Marvin, born in Jamaica and raised in London, built a globe-spanning career before joining Bob Marley & The Wailers.
As a child actor, he appeared in The Beatles’ 1965 film “Help!” and later honed his guitar chops in the US alongside blues legend T-Bone Walker and Ike and Tina Turner.
Back in Britain, he performed with acts including the Keef Hartley Band and his own rock outfit Hanson before becoming a key member of Marley’s band in 1977.
FBI agents on Wednesday executed search warrants at Carvalho’s San Pedro home, his downtown LA office and a $1.4 million South Florida residence belonging to Kerr as part of a sealed federal investigation.
The probe is tied to the failed AI education startup AllHere, which secured a contract worth up to $6 million with LAUSD to develop a chatbot known as “Ed.” The district ultimately spent roughly $3 million before shutting the project down.
No arrests have been made as of Thursday morning.
AllHere’s founder and former CEO, Joanna Smith-Griffin, was arrested in 2024 and charged in Manhattan federal court with securities fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Prosecutors allege she fabricated revenue figures and misled investors about the company’s financial health. AllHere later filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Carvalho has denied personal involvement in the vendor selection process and previously said the allegations against Smith-Griffin, “if true,” represented a “disturbing and disappointing house of cards.”
LAUSD has said it is cooperating with federal authorities.
Kerr, a Florida-based education consultant with ties to Carvalho dating back to his tenure leading Miami-Dade County Public Schools, worked with AllHere as a consultant. She has claimed in bankruptcy proceedings that the company owes her $630,000 in unpaid commissions tied to the LAUSD deal.
Kerr publicly praised Carvalho in a LinkedIn post three years ago, sharing a photo of herself smiling alongside the superintendent at what she described as his “Opening of Schools Address.”
In the image, Kerr stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Carvalho and other officials outside what appears to be a district event, captioning the post: “Superintendent’s Opening of Schools Address was brilliant,” followed by hashtags including #lausd and #leadershipmatters.
Her son, Richard Kerr, was an AllHere account executive who told an education outlet that he pitched the company’s services to LAUSD leaders.
He has described his mother as playing a “significant role” in closing the contract.