A Chicago Public Schools teacher has been accused of possessing and distributing child pornography, federal officials announced Friday.
Jaron P. Woodsley, 27, is charged with receiving and distributing child pornography, allegedly shared images of child pornography last fall with another individual on Telegram, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago.
Woodsley, of Chicago, was arrested Friday morning and was scheduled to appear for a hearing at 2 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez.
Using Telegram, Woodsley distributed at least 13 videos and received six videos from the other individual, who was indicted by a federal grand jury in Colorado last year, the statement said.
Between Sept. 20 and Sept. 24, 2024, Woodsley and the individual allegedly messaged each other over Telegram, according to a criminal complaint.
According to the complaint, some of the alleged messages exchanged between the two said:
“Got any boys?”
“few hbu.”
“Same. Wanna trade?”
Citing publicly available data, the complaint said that Woodsley is a Chicago Public Schools teacher at Elementary School A, and is also a staff member at the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra.
As of March 31, Woodsley was teaching at Robert Fulton Elementary School, 5300 S. Hermitage Ave., according to the Chicago Public Schools website. His salary was listed as $68,529, the site said.
On Friday, CPS issued a statement: “Student safety is one of Chicago Public Schools’ highest priorities. The District was notified Friday, August 1 of charges involving CPS teacher Jaron Woodsley. Upon learning of the teacher’s arrest, the District immediately removed this individual from their position and the Office of Inspector General has opened an investigation. CPS will not hesitate to terminate an employee under established District policies and procedures.”
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Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra executive director Jennie Oh Brown said: “We have learned that one of our part-time staff members was arrested for alleged receipt and distribution of child pornography. This alleged behavior is abhorrent and vile and completely inconsistent with both CYSO policies and the law. This individual was suspended immediately while we conduct our own investigation. CYSO staff has no reason to believe that any CYSO child has been impacted by these allegations.”
If convicted, Woodsley faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in a federal prison and a maximum of 20 years, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.