Former St. Mary's High teacher sentenced to 90 days in prison after child pornography charges

A former St. Mary's High School social studies teacher pleaded guilty Wednesday to three counts of possession of child pornography and was sentenced to 90 days in jail.

Michael Hislop, 27, must register as a Level I sex offender for 15 years and spend three years on probation. During that time, he is prohibited from having unsupervised contact with children or working in a position that involves children, said Anne Arundel District Court Judge Stacy McCormack.

In Maryland, Level I is the least stringent classification on the state registry, and Level III is the most stringent. According to the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, the age of the victim is not relevant to a defendant's classification.

Hislop, who began teaching at Annapolis Catholic School in 2022, was arrested in March after police searched his Arnold home. According to Assistant District Attorney Sean Fox, when questioned by authorities, Hislop described his use of child pornography as “an itch in the back of my mind.”

In January, detectives from the Anne Arundel County Police Department's Special Operations and Narcotics Unit received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about 22 pornographic files on two different IP addresses.

According to charging documents, after reviewing the uploaded content and issuing subpoenas to two service providers, investigators discovered child pornography linked to an IP address associated with St. Mary's in downtown Annapolis as well as Hislop's home.

Police spokesman Marc Limansky said in March that while “no images were found on the school's devices or computers, investigators believe Hislop may have used the school's network for illegal activities related to the images found on his personal devices.”

Hislop was placed on leave immediately after the school learned of the police investigation, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Baltimore said. He was fired in February, a month before he was charged with 16 misdemeanors.

When his leave began, Hislop was up to date with child protection training, according to church officials. According to the Anne Arundel County Police Department and the Archdiocese of Baltimore, there is no evidence that anyone at the school was affected or involved in Hislop's crimes.

Hislop attended and graduated from St. Mary's High School before earning his bachelor's and master's degrees from Loyola University.

Defence lawyer Peter O'Neill told the court that he believed mental health issues were a factor in his client's decision to download the material. By using the material, Hislop was “practically begging to be caught”.

He said Hislop had already undergone a psychosexual assessment, which concluded the teacher was not a paedophile, although the pornography suggested an attraction to children. He also said his client had been receptive to treatment and had completed several hours of therapy.

Before handing down her sentence, McCormack said pre-sentence probation was possible, which could have cleared the case from Hislop's record. And while she decided not to follow the state's suggestion of 18 months in prison – a request Fox made given the ages of the girls pictured and the ages of the students at the school – she said a prison sentence was “appropriate.”

Because the sentence is less than 18 months, Hislop will serve his time in a local detention center, O'Neill said. After his arrest, Hislop was released on parole, meaning he will not receive credit for time served.

Hislop's wife was present at Wednesday's hearing. O'Neill said his client has been with her for years and she continues to support her husband.

Originally published: August 28, 2024 at 18:14