PA: 1st Grade Teacher, Camp Counselor Arrested on Child Porn Charges

By Teresa Masterson, Vince Lattanzio

NBCPhiladelphia.com

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38576157/ns/local_news-philadelphia_pa/

A first grade teacher in West Chester and director of a local summer camp was arrested on charges of having hundreds of images of child pornography, authorities say.

David Devine, a first grade teacher for the West Chester Area School District and director of Camp Flying Hawk day camp, possessed more than 500 sexually explicit images of elementary-school-age children, according to Delaware County District Attorney G. Michael Green.

Devine, 34, taught first graders at Penn Wood Elementary for a year and a half, officials said. The district said Devine passed all required background tests before starting at the school.

"Devines clearances were completed prior to his employment," the district said in a statement. "No infractions were reported in these clearances, and we have had no reports of any improper conduct by Mr. Devine during his employment with the district."

School district officials say their Internet filtering system prevents anyone from accessing pornographic sites on school property.

Investigators were tipped off to Devine's alleged habits by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

It is unknown whether or not the photos are of any children with which Devine was in contact, but D.A. Green says there's no reason thus far to believe that to be the case.

For the complete article, please follow the link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38576157/ns/local_news-philadelphia_pa/

PA: 1st Grade Teacher, Camp Counselor Arrested on Child Porn Charges

By Teresa Masterson, Vince Lattanzio

NBCPhiladelphia.com

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38576157/ns/local_news-philadelphia_pa/

A first grade teacher in West Chester and director of a local summer camp was arrested on charges of having hundreds of images of child pornography, authorities say.

David Devine, a first grade teacher for the West Chester Area School District and director of Camp Flying Hawk day camp, possessed more than 500 sexually explicit images of elementary-school-age children, according to Delaware County District Attorney G. Michael Green.

Devine, 34, taught first graders at Penn Wood Elementary for a year and a half, officials said. The district said Devine passed all required background tests before starting at the school.

"Devines clearances were completed prior to his employment," the district said in a statement. "No infractions were reported in these clearances, and we have had no reports of any improper conduct by Mr. Devine during his employment with the district."

School district officials say their Internet filtering system prevents anyone from accessing pornographic sites on school property.

Investigators were tipped off to Devine's alleged habits by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

It is unknown whether or not the photos are of any children with which Devine was in contact, but D.A. Green says there's no reason thus far to believe that to be the case.

For the complete article, please follow the link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38576157/ns/local_news-philadelphia_pa/

AK: Social worker charged with possessing child pornography

LT. CMDR.: Founded nonprofit camp to treat sexually abused boys.

By JAMES HALPIN
jhalpin@adn.com

Published: October 23rd, 2009 01:20 PM
Last Modified: October 24th, 2009 04:05 PM

http://www.adn.com/209/story/984884.html

An Anchorage social worker who works with children on Elmendorf Air Force Base has been arrested on a charge of possessing child pornography after police say they found in his home thousands of graphic images of child abuse.

Lt. Cmdr. Andrew William Young of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps is charged in federal court with possessing images depicting children as young as 5 or 6 years old being molested and abused, Anchorage police said Friday. Police searching the home collected the largest amount of physical evidence of any single child porn case to date, police Lt. Dave Parker said.

Young, 46, is a licensed clinical therapist who specializes in treating children, police said. According to Young's resume, he has been a senior officer at child and adolescent services for the 3rd Medical Group on Elmendorf since 2008. His job includes managing clinical services for children of active-duty personnel from Elmendorf, Fort Richardson and Kodiak Coast Guard station, his resume says. He supervises staff treating children at the mental health clinic and consults with the chief of pediatrics along with school officials, according to his resume.

Young has also worked as a school counselor, a special-needs educator and was a founder of a nonprofit summer camp to treat sexually abused boys, his resume says.

Anchorage police cyber-crimes Detective Tammy Dunn said Friday she has uncovered no evidence Young has molested children, but the evidence uncovered during a search of his home, which was still being processed, was cause for concern.

Dunn began investigating Young last month after getting a tip he possessed child porn. The Alaska Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force served a search warrant at his West Anchorage home Thursday and seized computers and hard drives containing thousands of images and videos, police said. Young was arrested that night.

"Sometimes we do the search warrant and we don't make the arrest this fast," Dunn said. "But because of his dealing with children, the availability of children to him and his interaction with them on a daily basis, that's the reason that we acted very quickly."

Young was booked without bail at the Anchorage jail.

Police said the investigation is continuing and more charges may be filed. Detectives are also examining whether there were any abuse victims in Alaska or his previous locations that could be connected to the case. Young has also lived in Texas, Florida, Virginia, Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Wisconsin, Connecticut, Germany and Iraq.

A national spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Lt. Kate Migliaccio, declined to comment on the case.

An Elmendorf spokesman, Stephen Lee, also declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation.

"It's currently under investigation. That's all we really know about it," Lee said. The base set up a contact number -- 580-2644 -- for anyone concerned about the care they received, he said.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Dunn at 786-2609.

CA: Teacher resigns; report finds room for improvement in Antioch school district's handling of child porn case

By Hilary Costa
East County Times
Posted: 06/05/2009 02:46:02 PM PDT
Updated: 06/05/2009 05:46:43 PM PDT
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_12529704?nclick_check=1

An Antioch music teacher suspected of downloading child pornography on his classroom computer has resigned from the school district the same week an independent investigation of the district's handling of the case recommended changes in how it deals with similar incidents in the future.

The school board accepted the resignation of former Carmen Dragon Elementary School teacher James Carlile, 52, on Wednesday. The Antioch Unified School District will notify California's Commission on Teacher Credentialing, as required when a teacher resigns at the threat of disciplinary action.

Carlile was arrested in February after the school district reported to police suspicions that he viewed child pornography at work. But the district's report was made Feb. 3, nearly three weeks after school officials seized his terminal and placed him on paid administrative leave while it explored the matter.

In May, the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office declined to prosecute Carlile, citing the delay in notifying police and lack of clear evidence of child pornography. Police records indicate additional evidence may have been destroyed after Carlile was placed on leave.

On Thursday night, government and education attorney Lou Lozano presented his findings that the school district's handling of the case was "reasonable and appropriate" but suggesting a number of things that could have been done differently and should be adopted for future crisis management.

"There were many ways things that could have been improved," Lozano told the packed board room.

Lozano said he interviewed district personnel, attorneys, the deputy district attorney who declined to prosecute Carlile, and Antioch police Lt. Leonard Orman in the course of the investigation.

In his 12-page report, he underscores that district personnel made good-faith decisions throughout the investigation — but that further training in areas of crisis management and pedophilia recognition would have been beneficial.

Lozano said the district did not violate California mandated reporter laws concerning child abuse and exploitation, because no abuse took place in this case.
Although the school district has been widely criticized for waiting to report its suspicions to police, the report shows that district human resources personnel were advised by legal counsel and in a casual conversation with an Antioch student resource police officer that a police report was not necessary.

However, Lozano said, the question of whether to call police even arising should be a signal to do it.

"Don't hesitate," he said Thursday.

Other recommendations from the report include:

Training school supervisors on recognizing signs of pedophilia or sexual problems.

Forming a crisis-management team to deal with future incidents and communicate with the public.

Improve the working relationship between the school district and other public agencies, including police.

Enforce technology use policies and consider random Internet use monitoring.

In accepting the report, school board President Walter Ruehlig said the district is hoping to learn from it and heal from the situation.

"This is not a hanging jury," Ruehlig said. "We're looking for take-aways."

Copies of the report are available at the school district office, 510 G St.

Reach Hilary Costa at 925-779-7166 or hcosta@bayareanewsgroup.com.

ONLINE
Read the report at ContraCostaTimes.com. Copies are available the Antioch school district office, 510 G St.

D.C.: Teacher Identified in Beauvoir Child Porn Case

WRC-TV
updated 5:15 p.m. ET, Wed., Oct. 15, 2008
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27188800/

WASHINGTON - D.C. police identified an elementary school teacher suspected of possession of inappropriate photos of young boys.


Police are searching for former Beauvoir Elementary School teacher Eric Toth, 26, Detective Sgt. Morani Hines said. Toth is wanted for possession of child pornography.

In early June, Toth, who taught third-graders at Beauvoir Elementary School, was kicked off the campus at the National Cathedral in northwest Washington.

On June 12, the school notified parents in a letter that a teacher was found in possession of a school-owned camera with inappropriate pictures of a boy. Sources told that pictures of at least three other boys being touched in inappropriate ways were on a thumb drive.

It was common for Toth to tutor and baby-sit Beauvoir students, sources said. At least one of the boys photographed is believed to be a Beauvoir student, sources said.

In August, Toth's car was found in a parking garage at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. A note in the car indicated that Toth was contemplating suicide and that his body would be found in a nearby lake, sources said. Investigators believe that may be a ruse, police said.

"No body has been found, and it's reasonable to believe he's still alive," Hines said.

Toth had worked at Beauvoir for three years. Before the end of the 2007-08 school year, he resigned and told school officials he wouldn't be returning this year.

Federal authorities and police in Fairfax County, Va., and Montgomery County, Md., also are involved in the investigation, sources said. Incidents related to the case may have taken place inside homes in those counties.

Anyone with information about the case should call police at 202-727-9099.