HOUSTON – A Katy Independent School District high school teacher told detectives he’d been looking at child pornography his entire adult life, according to prosecutors with Fort Bend County.
When detectives arrived at his home Monday morning, James Paul Stone also admitted he’d taken candid photographs of children at local pools, at beaches as well as female students in his classroom, the prosecutor said in Stone’s first court hearing.
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The 53-year-old social studies teacher at Tompkins High School also took candid pictures of a teen family member and their friends.
Thousands of child pornography pictures and files were found on about 20 hard drives and 20 SD cards inside Stone’s Katy area home, prosecutors said.
They’d gotten a warrant to search his home after an investigation launched by Montgomery County Precinct 3′s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit.
Prosecutors say Stone was sharing child pornography and they tracked him down through his IP address.
A forensics team is still going through all the hard drives and SD cards.
Stone has been teaching for approximately 20 years, most recently at Obra D. Tompkins High School on Falcon Landing Boulevard in the Katy area.
After his arrest Monday, the district sent out a statement saying Stone had not been on campus since last week and won’t return. His court-appointed attorney confirmed in court he is now unemployed.
“Due to the ongoing investigation, we are unable to provide additional information at this time. Please be assured the district takes this type of incident very seriously and is fully cooperating with law enforcement,” the district’s statement reads.
Stone is facing nine counts of possessing child pornography and seven of those are felonies.
His attorney asked for a $30,000 bond, saying Stone had no criminal history, no job and is dealing with physical issues, including gout, arthritis and is a recovering alcoholic. Stone also wanted to have contact with his two teen children.
The prosecutor argued he should not be around any children under 18, not even his own, and asked for a $900,000 bond -- $100,000 for each count. The judge agreed.
Conditions of Stone’s bail include:
- He can’t have contact with any children, including his own, under 18.
- He can’t go within 1,000 feet of parks, schools and community swimming pools.
- He can’t own or operate any device that gives him access to the internet without pre-authorized approval.
- He agrees to periodic, unannounced checks of any computers or devices by probation staff or forensic analysts.
- He must surrender his passport and any visas.
- He agrees to satellite monitoring.