On Dec. 17, the school district held a quickly organized parent conference at Castlemont Elementary School to allay any fears concerning the arrest of third-grade teacher Christopher Casey for possession of child pornography. In an atmosphere thick with parent concern, VanderMolen offered all the solace she could by fully explaining what the district knew to the families.

VanderMolen said that searches of Casey's classroom and home computers, as well as extensive interviews with children, do not indicate that any current or former Castlemont children were harmed by Casey. But she suggested parents speak to their children, which could aid in the investigation and help ease their bewilderment.

"We are very, very troubled and concerned with what's going on," VanderMolen said. "If there is more [than child pornography], we need to know."

On Dec. 14, several students spotted inappropriate photographs on Casey's classroom computer and reported what they saw to their parents. Parents notified school principal Barbara Anderson, who informed deputy superintendent Maurice Ghysels. He then contacted the San Jose Police Department. San Jose Police Department's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force/Child Exploitation Unit detectives began investigating.

On Dec. 15 at 7 a.m., after serving search warrants, officers confiscated two computers from Casey's home and a computer from a relative's home. They also removed the computer from Casey's Castlemont classroom. During the course of their investigation, the San Jose Police discovered partially clad young females and child pornography on the classroom computer and a folder of child pornography in the classroom.

During the meeting VanderMolen told the parents she was not certain whether the confiscated folder was on the computer desktop or a physical folder. But San Jose Police Department spokeswoman Gina Teeporten confirmed that there was a physical folder in the classroom with pornographic photographs printed from his school computer.

On Dec, 15 at 3 p.m., Casey, 44, turned himself in to the police. The third-grade teacher has worked in the CUSD since 1990, and resides in San Jose. He has no prior criminal record. His wife is a teacher at Monroe Middle School, which is also part of the district.

Although Castlemont School on E. Payne Avenue has a Campbell address, it straddles the San Jose and Campbell communities and is under the jurisdiction of the San Jose Police Department, according to San Jose Police spokesman Enrique Garcia.

Casey was booked at the Santa Clara County Jail and was later released on bail. The information was confirmed by police department spokeswoman Gina Tepoorten.

At the meeting, VanderMolen, Ghysels, Anderson, San Jose Police Sgt. Tom Sims and psychologist Linda Williams fielded questions from the parents for an hour and a half.

Since all the photographs found on Casey's computer appeared to be downloaded from the Internet, several parents questioned Casey's background and the school district's safeguards for Internet security. According to VanderMolen, the mid-December search and arrest was the first inkling the district had that the pornographic materials existed. One parent, however, told the group that after learning about the incident through the school letter brought home by students, his child said he had seen inappropriate photographs on Casey's computer in mid-November. The boy had not mentioned it to his parents until the school letter came home, the father said.

Jim Walter, whose daughter is in kindergarten, questioned how the district planned to prevent future incidences. Walter suggested the district install tougher computer firewalls and do monthly computer checks.

Ghysels said the district utilizes software that scans and prohibits access to inappropriate websites daily, but that it is not 100 percent foolproof. He added that computers are checked randomly, and are to only be used for school business.

According to district spokeswoman Marla Olszewski, Casey is cooperating with the investigation. He's been legally barred from returning to the school, and he has not taught at the school since Dec. 14.

Since Dec. 15, a substitute teacher has taught Casey's class. The district has already advertised and begun recruiting for his position, Ghysels said. The district plans to hire his replacement by the second week of January.

Although parents were deeply concerned, many parents thanked Castlemont staff and district administrators for effectively communicating with the families. On Dec. 17, Anderson spoke with all the Castlemont students, and using the school's code of conduct terminology Anderson said, "Casey had done something below the line."

Casey, however, was a well-liked teacher at Castlemont and many children are disappointed at the news, Williams said. Other students, who don't fully know the details of Casey's departure, have taken to spreading schoolyard rumors and teasing other students by calling them "Mr. Casey."

Williams suggested parents provide an open environment for children to discuss their positive feelings and concerns about what happened.

Ron Laccabue said his fourth-grade daughter, who took math with Casey, was devastated by the news. Laccabue and his wife had been so impressed with Casey, they had even bought him a Christmas gift basket. Laccabue said he is confident Casey did not harm his daughter.

Former Campbell City Councilman Matthew Dean said his four children were all students in Casey's class as third-graders. He, too, is confident each one was not harmed.

"We asked each one if they had been touched, seen anything happen," Dean said. "And all we got was no, no, no, no."

All four children, he said, had good experiences with Casey. His youngest, a fifth-grader, particularly liked Casey.

"She was extremely disappointed she didn't have Mr. Casey this year," Dean said.

Nonetheless, parents suggested that the district check all the school's computers to be certain there were no additional problems. Parents also hoped the school would talk to the students again on Jan. 3, after returning from the holiday break.

As the crowd dispersed, VanderMolen encouraged the parents to "be human" to Casey, a father of two. "This man is innocent today, he has not been proven guilty," she said.

Parent Laccabue will wait to pass judgment until the investigation reaches a conclusion. "If the allegations are true, he's made his bed and he has to lie in it. But I do empathize with his family," he said.