Two Montgomery Co. teachers charged with sexual abuse

Two Montgomery County teachers were arrested for sex-related offenses Monday, police say.

Cuyler Jay Cornell, a 7th grade teacher at Neelsville Middle School in Germantown, was arrested on several accounts.

He has been on administrative leave since late February when the school learned he was under investigation.

In an unrelated case, a media service technician at Silver Spring’s Northwood High School was also arrested and charged with sex-related offenses.

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Aaron William Murray La Mere, 39, worked at the school’s Audio/Visual Department.

The allegations against Cornell, 50, came to light in February when police were notified of possible inappropriate conduct between him and a 14-year-old student.

An investigation found Cornell and the victim became friends in 2010, while the student was in Cornell’s class. The two began visiting in and outside the victim’s home.

The relationship continued after the school year ended and witnesses notified school officials and police.

Cornell was later charged with two third degree sex offenses and one count of sexual abuse of a minor.

The other case came to light on March 14 when detectives received information that La Mere had child pornography. A laptop La Mere had while working in the school was confiscated and there were numerous pornographic images of young men.

During the investigation, police were told three other students at the school were sex abuse victims of La Mere. The alleged abuse occurred between Oct. 1, 2011 and Feb. 29, 2012.

In this time period, La Mere solicited sex from two victims via text messages and inappropriately touched two on several occasions. Additionally, La Mere showed two victims cell phone pictures of a naked man and exposed himself to two of the victims.

The offenses all happened within Northwood High School.

La Mere is charged with two counts of indecent exposure, three counts of possession of child pornography, four counts of sexual solicitation of a minor, four counts of third degree sex offenses, three counts of sexual abuse of a minor and one count of committing a fourth degree sex offense.

La Mere was placed on administrative leave as soon as the investigation began. He later resigned.

Despite the similarity in location and time of arrest, the two cases are unrelated.

Below are copies of letters the schools sent home to parents.

Source : wtop