Community Calls For Answers Following Skokie Teacher's Federal Child Pornography Charge

SKOKIE, IL — Parents and community members of Niles North High School are calling for answers from district officials after federal authorities charged a Spanish teacher with transporting child sexual abuse material.

At a special meeting on Monday, the District 219 Board of Education voted to terminate Thomas Neal, 42, who was arrested earlier this month on suspicion of transporting child pornography on his phone from Chicago to Mexico, according to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Related: Skokie Teacher Caught With Child Pornography On His Phone At Mexican Airport: Feds

During the meeting, Board President Amber Wood said the district was limited in what it could say because the matter remains under investigation.

Wood said the district acted once it became aware of possible misconduct.

“When we became aware of potential misconduct and violation of board policy, we took immediate action. This means that the employee named in this criminal complaint was indefinitely placed on suspension and was denied access to all District 219 premises and electronic networks. This person was directed not to contact any students. D219 strictly follows this policy,” Wood said.

Wood also said the district was aware of a 2023 complaint filing regarding Neal. According to the 2023 complaint, a person identified as Neal’s former romantic partner reported that Neal regularly kept a hard drive containing images of children as young as 1 year old being sexually abused.

The individual said that he reported Neal to the high school. The anonymous call was immediately forwarded to Skokie police at the time, according to Wood.

Community members criticized the board’s response during the meeting and called for more transparency.

“This is an incredibly serious matter, and your community expects an explanation. That explanation needs to be forthcoming, and it better be a hell of a lot more detail than what was provided this evening,” one community member said.

D219 Director of Communications Takumi Iseda said the board continues to cooperate fully with authorities during this active investigation.

"Niles Township High School District 219 (D219) was made aware on June 25 about this criminal complaint filed by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The employee under HSI investigation was immediately placed on suspension," Iseda said in a statement to Patch.

Neal has been charged with one count of transportation of child pornography. The charge is punishable by a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison and a maximum of 20 years, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.