IN Teacher Charged With Possession Of Child Porn

FRENCH LICK, IN (WAVE) – An Indiana health teacher has been charged with child pornography after years of accusations caught up with her.

Springs Valley High School teacher Kari Buchanan, 42, turned herself in Friday morning, after Indiana State Police investigated claims of inappropriate relations with students.

Springs Valley Community Schools met Friday night to deal with the matter, voting on accepting Buchanan’s letter of resignation.

Buchanan was the focus of a two week ISP investigation into claims spanning years of inappropriate sexual relationships with students at Springs Valley High School.

The probable cause affidavit says Buchanan had been contacting students over social media, namely Snapchat and Instagram, and through texts and emails. It also cites a previous police investigation into the rumors, and the fact a board member might have been aware of inappropriate texts, but no action was taken.

While speaking with Buchanan, the investigator said she admitted to having sexual relationships with at least two students, claiming one was 18 at the time and the other had graduated. She then divulged more information, and that’s where the child pornography charge came in.

The documents show Buchanan admitted to having inappropriate conversations with a current junior at the high school and they both admitted to sending each other explicit nude videos.

The board declined to comment any further.

Springs Valley Community Schools released this statement from Superintendent Trevor Apple:

“The Indiana State Police have informed us of the arrest of a school employee, who is charged with one count of possession of child pornography.

Springs Valley Community Schools moved swiftly when we became aware of these allegations. We have been cooperating with the Department of Child Services and law enforcement since that time. Parents should know that we acted immediately. We were unable to notify patrons about this matter when the investigation was ongoing.

The employee in question is currently on paid administrative leave, and has submitted a letter of resignation.

The safety of our students is our highest priority and any allegations of staff misconduct are taken seriously. We encourage parents and/or students to report any behavior that would compromise student safety.

As we are legally required to respect the privacy of our staff and students, Springs Valley Community Schools will have no further comment on the matter at this time.”