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Cass Lake teacher in court to face child porn allegations

Teacher has been at Cass Lake-Bena Middle School for 12 years

By TIM HARLOW, Star Tribune

Last update: January 25, 2008 - 12:18 PM

A special education teacher in the Cass Lake-Bena School District is due in court today to face allegations that he was in possession of child pornography.

The male teacher, 65, will learn at his 1 p.m. arraignment whether the Beltrami County District Attorney will file charges of possession and distribution of child pornography, an official in the county attorney's office said Friday.

The teacher was arrested Thursday in his residence in Northern Township, officials said.

The teacher has been a special education teacher for the past 12 years at Cass Lake-Bena Middle School. Until the allegations surfaced this week, Superintendent Carl Remmers said he had been a good teacher, and that to his knowledge no reports of children being harmed while at school have been filed.

The teacher has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, Remmers said.

About 290 students in grades five through eight attend Cass Lake-Bena Middle School.