News & Resources

Helena, Montana elementary school employee charged with felony child abuse

Nov 18, 2011 Karen Umpierre

An employee of the Four Georgians Elementary School in Helena, Montana was arrested on child pornography charges, Beartooth NBC reports. According to the FBI, Carrick downloaded approximately 117 child pornography files through September and October. Jason Carrick, 34, managed to pass a background check through the school system without any hitches. According to Helena superintendent Keith Meyer, there was nothing suspicious in Carrick's profile and no mention of felony sexual abuse of children in his profile. Carrick was employed at Four Georgians Elementary School to work with students in a classroom, and guest-taught at other schools in the district as well. Meyer added that the schools reported no unusual behavior from Carrick when he worked with the children. "The district, number one, did their due diligence and that we followed procedure in hiring and that we deal with situations like this that come to our, you know, that come forward and so we feel very comfortable in what we had provided and then the follow up," said Meyer. Detailed background checks are necessary for schools to ensure the safety of teachers and children. Meyer told the news source once the district was notified of Carrick's arrest, and they notified all parents immediately.