Louisville priest jailed on child porn charge

KENTUCKY
The Courier-Journal

Jeff Watkins
August 22, 2015

Father Stephen Pohl, who resigned as pastor of St. Margaret Mary church this week after a child porn investigation, was arrested Friday in Pinellas County and jailed for possession of child pornography.

An ongoing FBI investigation has found that Pohl had child porn on his computer as well as up to 200 photos of St. Margaret Mary school children, officials said. All of the students were clothed, but investigators deemed some of the photos inappropriate. Investigators also told the archdiocese that Pohl had downloaded child porn on his personal computer.

During a news briefing hours before the arrest, Chancellor Brian Reynolds said the FBI cyber crimes investigation — prompted after a child told a family member about a photo that was taken that “bothered the child” — is still ongoing and could take months. The information the archdiocese shared Friday was from an interim investigation report officials received a day earlier.

Pohl, 57, who had been pastor of the parish at 7813 Shelbyville Road since 2008 and an ordained priest since 1985, was put on leave last week. On Thursday night, after Pohl resigned, the archdiocese shared the preliminary findings with an upset school staff and parents, offering counselors and information.

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