Stephen McDonough, who was an employee of the Butler Extended Day Program, is facing child pornography charges following his arrest by State Police last week.
According to court records, McDonough, 60, was charged with one count of possession of child pornography and one count of distributing child sex abuse materials. The Waltham resident was arraigned in Waltham District Court on Friday, Sept. 26, and is being held on $25,000 cash bail. Conditions of release include no unsupervised contact with minors and no volunteer or employment that involves minors.
He is next expected to appear in court on Oct. 22 for a pretrial hearing.
Superintendent Jill Geiser clarified in an email to families last week that McDonough was not an employee of Belmont Public Schools. She wrote that there is no indication that any student of the system or client of the extended day program was involved.
Geiser’s email went on to outline steps taken in the aftermath of the arrest:
- The suspect was placed on leave, and the extended day program is implementing procedures outlined by its Human Resources Department.
- The individual was issued a “no trespass” order.
- BEDP reviewed all background documents to ensure that due diligence was done.
- Belmont Schools are supporting the extended day program with any needs they have, including a review of their safety protocols and offering resources for any members of the Butler community who may be impacted by this matter.
“While they are an independent company and bear responsibility for background checks, I can confirm on BEDP’s behalf that this individual was properly screened, per their protocols,” Geiser wrote.
When reached by phone Wednesday afternoon, Extended Day Program Director Joanne Tirimacco declined comment.
According to court records, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children informed State Police about “apparent child pornography” coming from a home in Waltham. A warrant executed on Thursday, Sept. 25, resulted in the discovery of child porn material on his phone and other “non-digital evidence.”
According to the police report, State Trooper Brian McCarthy of the State Police Cyber Crime Unit wrote that the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services indicated McDonough had no prior criminal history, no warrants, no license to carry, and was not a registered sex offender.
