A former Canon-McMillan High School teacher, Justin White, is charged with institutional sexual assault following allegations of a sexual relationship with a student. According to WPXI, the 48-year-old White, who was arrested and appeared in court with his lawyer, is facing a multitude of charges after a student’s father alerted authorities concerning the material he discovered on his daughter's phone.
The investigation revealed that the alleged relationship started in October of 2023 but turned sexual after the student, then a senior at the high school, turned 18; according to court documents, the teacher provided her gifts, including a necklace and a second phone, which facilitated communication without detection, investigators have also found video footage from the school's security cameras showing White and the student entering the school building on Sundays, this evidence contributing to the charges as per the report by CBS News Pittsburgh.
Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh condemned the actions of the teacher, stating, "It’s horrific, he’s in a position of trust, he’s supposed to be protecting children and not violating that trust - 18 or under - he’s a teacher," in a statement obtained by WPXI. The breadth of evidence pointed to the charge of institutional sexual assault, including over 14,000 emails and more than 8,000 messages exchanged between White and the victim, substantiating the serious nature of these allegations.
White, who is now detained with a bond set at $150,000, had his preliminary hearing scheduled for August 5.
