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TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A Travis County grand jury returned 17 indictments against a former Eanes Independent School District music teacher, according to a Tuesday morning press release from Travis County District Attorney José Garza.
The Texas Department of Public Safety initially arrested Zachary Barnett, 26, on three charges of possession of child pornography, which KXAN previously reported in February.
A DPS affidavit filed in February said that investigators seized 13 digital devices allegedly containing more than 8,000 depictions of female students. That affidavit states the alleged depictions “zoomed into the female students’ skirts, their underwear, and their crotch area.”
Following the grand jury indictments, Barnett now faces six third-degree felony charges of possession of child pornography, 10 state jail felony charges of possession of lewd visual material depicting a child and one first-degree felony charge of sexual performance by a child.
Court records, as of 11 a.m. Tuesday, did not list an attorney representing Barnett.
“The Travis County District Attorney’s Office takes the work of presenting facts and evidence to a grand jury very seriously,” said Garza in the release. “In this case, a panel of independent Travis County community members reviewed the evidence and law, determining that Mr. Barnett’s actions were unlawful. We look forward to pursuing justice for the families and communities impacted by these crimes.”
Barnett previously worked at an Eanes ISD elementary school since 2022.
“This is someone who very discreetly used personal technology to capture images of students who were clothed during the school day, but then used those images and the videos to objectify the students, as well as additional activity that was occurring in the persons life outside of school,” said Eanes ISD Superintendent Jeff Arnett in February.
What’s involved with these offenses?
Quick note: The Texas Penal Code still uses the phrase child pornography; however, the U.S. Department of Justice and advocacy groups recommend the term child sexual abuse material, or CSAM.
“Visual material” is a key term in some of these charges. This is defined by the penal code as films, photos, videotapes, negatives and slides, or disks, diskettes and physical storage mediums that can be used to display images on a TV or monitor. Typically, these cases treat each material as a separate charge.
According to the penal code, possession of child pornography involves visual materials that depict or contain depictions of a child “engaging in sexual conduct, including a child who engages in sexual conduct as a victim of [trafficking].” The severity of the charge increases from third degree felony depending on how many images are on a single visual material. After 100 depictions on a single material, the charge is prosecuted as a second-degree felony.
Possession of lewd visual material depicting a child involves materials that show “the genitals or pubic area” of a child regardless if they are clothed or unclothed. It must also appeal to a purient interest and lack “serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.” These offenses are state jail felonies unless a person has already been convicted for the offense or for possession of child pornography. The number of depictions doesn’t change the severity of the charge.
The offense of sexual performance by child occurs when a person “employs, authorizes, or induces” a child to “engage in sexual conduct or a sexual performance,” according to the penal code. Typically, it is a second degree felony, but becomes first degree if the victim is under 14 years old.