A former vocal music teacher at Bellevue East High School has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison in a child pornography case. David Groth was sentenced this week after prosecutors said he used an online messaging app to obtain dozens of videos and images depicting child sexual abuse.
According to KETV, Groth was sentenced to 14 years in prison for federal child pornography charges. Prosecutors said Groth used the online messaging platform Kik to obtain 114 child pornography videos, the station reported. Prosecutors also said he had 31 images and more than 70 videos stored on his cellphone, per the same report.
From Administrative Leave to Resignation
Groth, who taught vocal music at Bellevue East High School, was placed on paid administrative leave by Bellevue Public Schools on August 8, 2025, according to WOWT. He ultimately resigned from the district in April 2026, the station's report notes. At the time of his arrest, Groth, 37, was facing two federal counts of child pornography, per the same account.
One of the two charges alleged the distribution and possession of images of two children, one described as prepubescent and the other as under 12, according to the earlier WOWT report. Groth initially pleaded not guilty to the two charges at a first federal court appearance, the station reported. He later pleaded guilty to the federal child pornography charges during a subsequent court appearance, KETV reported.
Nearly a Decade at Burke High School
Before his time at Bellevue East, Groth worked at Omaha's Burke High School starting in 2015. Omaha Public Schools confirmed by email that Groth worked at Burke High School from 2015 to 2024, KETV reported, placing his tenure there at nearly a decade before he moved on to the Bellevue East vocal music position.
