More details emerge in teacher’s child porn investigation

Authorities divulged more details Thursday on the allegations against Modesto schoolteacher Daniel Glenn, who was arrested Tuesday on a child pornography charge.

Beside the inappropriate digital images that a former student sent to Glenn over several months, detectives found child pornography on his computer during a search of his home in September, said Modesto Police Department spokeswoman Heather Graves.

The additional content discovered in his home was not related to the former student. Detectives don’t believe the minors depicted are from Modesto, Graves said.

Glenn, a teacher at Mark Twain Junior High School, is facing a potential felony charge of possessing sexually explicit images of children. The Stanislaus County district attorney is reviewing the case, which has stunned many people who have known Glenn.

If the teacher is prosecuted and convicted on the proposed charge, the sentence could be one year in jail or prison, a $2,500 fine, or both.

Glenn, 37, formerly taught at Wilson Elementary School off La Loma Avenue and was assigned to Mark Twain in west Modesto for the current school year. He taught at the junior high for about a month and was placed on paid administrative leave around Sept. 16, said Craig Rydquist, associate superintendent of Modesto City Schools.

A girl, described as a former student of Glenn’s who is younger than 16, reported to school officials in September that she had shared what police called “inappropriate digital media” with Glenn. The sharing allegedly occurred near the end of the last school year and over the summer.

School officials notified police, who spoke with the girl and launched an investigation that continues, Graves said. This week, detectives concluded they had enough evidence to arrest Glenn.

When The Bee tried to contact Glenn on Thursday, the person who answered the call hung up the phone.

Modesto City Schools notified parents of Glenn’s arrest in voice and email messages sent to the homes of Wilson Elementary and Mark Twain students. The message blast wasn’t broad enough to notify all of Glenn’s former students.

Over an 11-year period, Glenn taught computer technology, science and other subjects at campuses including Salida Middle School, Wilson and Mark Twain.

Rydquist would not elaborate on why the message was limited to the Wilson and Twain parents. “We wanted to put the focus on the schools where he was working either this year or last year,” he said.

Some parents and former students expressed disbelief over Glenn’s arrest. He generally was described as a friendly, dedicated teacher with a nice family.

“This makes me sick,” said Beatrice Guzman-Alvarez, who posted a comment on The Bee’s Facebook page. Glenn was her daughter’s teacher when she attended Wilson. “I volunteered for him plenty of times and would have never thought he would do something like this,” the parent said.

A person identifying herself as a Wilson parent said she knew the girl in question. It was clear the girl had a crush on Glenn and there was a lot of interaction between them via email, phone and Facebook messages. “I warned him that the girl was a troubled child and he needed to be careful. He just blew me off,” the parent recalled.

Glenn was featured as the August 2012 “Teacher of the Month” by KXTV’s NEWS10 in Sacramento.

Modesto resident Alda Avila, who nominated him for a Class Acts teacher profile in The Bee in 2010, said she did not believe the allegations.

“Whoever is doing that is trying to ruin his reputation,” Avila said Thursday. “He is an excellent teacher and person. I have other parents who agree with me. Students that I know can’t believe what they have heard and seen and read.”

In its message to parents, Modesto City Schools said it had taken steps to keep Glenn away from all campuses and prohibit from contacting students, parents or staff members.

Beside the ongoing criminal probe, the school district will conduct an internal investigation, Rydquist said.

This story was originally published February 19, 2015 at 8:15 PM with the headline "More details emerge in teacher’s child porn investigation."