HOLYOKE — A Holyoke resident and middle school librarian for the Longmeadow public schools, who previously taught kindergartners at an Amherst elementary school, was arrested on one count of distribution of child pornography Wednesday, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Scott McGinley, 55, who made his first appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Katherine A. Robertson, allegedly distributed child sexual abuse material. Children’s underwear, bedding, a Santa costume, diapers, diaper cream and other items were allegedly recovered in a locked case during a search of his home.
McGinley is currently employed as the school librarian for Williams Middle School and Glenbrook Middle School, both in Longmeadow. For four years, from 2005 to 2009, he was a kindergarten teacher at the former Mark’s Meadow Elementary School in Amherst.
He was released on a series of conditions set by Robertson, including not having direct or indirect contact with anyone 18 or under, not having access to the internet, not leaving the state of Massachusetts without prior permission, remaining at his home between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m., submitting to location monitoring technology, not violating any federal, state or local law while on release, and submitting to supervision and reporting for supervision to the U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services Department.
The federal attorney’s office alleges that in July McGinley distributed child sexual abuse material to a group called “Little boyz only” on an encrypted messenger application. Then, when contacted by undercover law enforcement posing as a fellow user on the app, McGinley allegedly disclosed his sexual preference for “boys age 2-12” and “especially 4-7.”
Further allegations include that, in the conversations with undercover law enforcement, McGinley stated he had “students” who were “11-14 years old” but, “ha[d]n’t touched them sexually,” and that he sat “hot boys strategically so [he could] see under their desks, and close to [him],” and made graphic sexual statements about the boys.
On Aug. 8, searches of McGinley’s person and home allegedly resulted in the recovery of various electronic devices, including two iPhones, an Apple Watch, a tablet and two laptops. A locked Pelican case was recovered in the basement which is alleged to have contained items for children approximately 5 to 7 years old, including but not limited to, assorted children’s clothes, a Santa costume, diapers, diaper cream and apple sauce packets. The Pelican case also allegedly contained a toolbox with boys’ underwear and bedding stuffed inside.
According to the charging documents, a forensic examination of McGinley’s phone revealed over 100 files depicting child sexual abuse material. Ongoing review of McGinley’s devices is underway.
In addition to his career in education in the area, McGinley has been active in local politics, at one time overseeing the Hadley Greens, an affiliate of the state Green Party. He also helped lead efforts opposing big box development on Route 9 in the early 2000s. In 2003, he told the Gazette that he didn’t want Hadley to turn into the sprawl of his hometown of Marlton, New Jersey, a Philadelphia suburb, and he was a spokesman for the group opposed to rezoning that led to the construction of a Lowe’s home improvement store.
The charge of distribution of child pornography provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
U. S. Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement, with assistance provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Nashville Division, and the Longmeadow and Holyoke Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Caroline Merck of the Springfield Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.