Teacher at Collins-Riverside Middle School Charged With Possession of Child Porn

A teacher at Collins-Riverside Middle School was charged with possession of child pornography Tuesday night, according to a spokesperson for the Northport Police Department.

Lt. Keith Carpenter said 47-year-old Kenneth Pierce contacted NPD on May 7th to file a report about someone using a vehicle he owned without permission.

Carpenter said as police investigated Pierce's claims and spoke to other people involved in the original complaint, information and evidence came to light and they ultimately arrested Pierce Tuesday night and charged him with three counts of transmitting obscene material to a child and four counts of possession of child pornography.

Pierce teaches eighth graders at Collins-Riverside Middle School, but Carpenter emphasized that as of Wednesday afternoon, the case was not linked in any way to any students at Collins-Riverside or in the Tuscaloosa County School System.

Carpenter said the investigation is still ongoing, though, and police want to talk to other parties about the case. He said additional charges may follow.

Walter Davie, the superintendent of the Tuscaloosa County School System, sent a letter to parents Wednesday saying that school officials became aware of the accusations against Pierce only after he was arrested Tuesday.

"Although I know very few details about the law enforcement investigation at this point, I have spoken with administrators who have worked with Mr. Pierce," Davie said. "They assure me there have never been any reports to the school of inappropriate contact between Mr. Pierce and students."

Davie added that Pierce's contract for the 2019-2020 school year was not renewed, and that decision was made before Pierce was arrested.

Pierce was booked in the Tuscaloosa County Jail Tuesday night on a combined bond of $150,000. He was out on bond by Wednesday morning.