Jordan Frederic Schemmel, a 37-year-old teacher at Terry Parker High School in Jacksonville, was arrested and charged Friday, Oct. 19 with distributing child pornography over the internet, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Schemmel, who previously taught at Ponte Vedra High School, is now facing a mandatory minimum penalty of five to 20 years in federal prison, and a potential life term of supervised release.
Per the criminal complaint, on Sept. 5, an individual using the screen name “JS” and the user name “Profsunrise15” responded to a message posted by an undercover FBI agent on an online bulletin board frequented by individuals with a sexual interest in children. Beginning an online conversation with the agent, the user expressed such a sexual interest, sending the agent a video depicting a prepubescent child being sexually assaulted by an adult male, as well as a photo depicting similar criminal conduct with a child. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the IP address used by Profsunrise15 traced back to Schemmel’s residence in Jacksonville.
According to the FBI, its agents and other law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant at Schemmel’s home on Oct. 19, seizing several items of computer media and at least one Apple iPhone. During an interview with law enforcement, Schemmel confirmed that his Kik user name was Profsunrise15 and admitted that he had sent the child-pornographic video using the Kik app.
Per the FBI, Schemmel told FBI agents that his involvement in child pornography began a few months ago out of curiosity and stated that he thought it was fair to characterize his activities as “an addiction” and “fantasy” that he “would never act on.” He also said that he would often feel ashamed after viewing child pornography and had previously tried unsuccessfully to “walk away from it.” After an examination of Schemmel’s smartphone and a thumb drive recovered from his residence both yielded images and videos depicting child pornography and bestiality, he was placed under arrest.
Investigated by the FBI, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, this case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.
Anyone with information regarding the investigation is encouraged to contact the FBI’s Jacksonville office at (904) 248-7000.
