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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
Courthouse News Service Courthouse News Service

Sub Who Used Student IDs in Child Porn Sued

ELLICOTT CITY, Md. (CN) - A middle-school substitute teacher used the faces of students in child pornography images he posted on the web, one student and her parents claim in state court.

Jane Doe and her parents sued Jeremy Flagg Sykes for violating federal child-pornography laws and invasion of privacy, the Howard County Public Schools board of education for negligence, and both parties for emotional distress in a 15-page complaint filed July 21.

Sykes, 45, was convicted of possessing of child pornography in January and is serving a sentence of 16 years and nine months at the Maryland Correctional Institution in Jessup.

According to the suit, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children discovered the images on photobucket.com - posted using an email address that belonged to Sykes.

The images were digitally altered photos of female students taken from the Folly Quarter Middle School's yearbook and school identification card system, manipulated by a photo-editing system and attached to photos of bodies engaged in sexual acts.

In all, Sykes used the faces of 18 students for his scheme, the lawsuit says.

Doe and her parents also claim the school district was negligent by hiring Sykes in 2013, since he had a criminal record.

A Maryland judiciary case search indicates Sykes' involvement in domestic violence and second-degree assault cases in 2012 in Towson District Court.

Neither a representative of the board nor plaintiffs' attorney Michael Herman responded to requests for comment.

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