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MAGNA — A former veteran teacher at Cyprus High School has been charged with viewing pornography in his classroom while he was still employed.

Douglas M. Lind, 55, of West Valley City, was charged April 1 with accessing pornographic material on school property, a class A misdemeanor. He surrendered to Pre-trial Services and was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on Thursday.

In January a counselor went to Lind's classroom to talk to him. The counselor found the room was locked. When Lind opened the door, the counselor said he could hear "inappropriate noises coming from Lind's desk area," according to charging documents.

A complaint was filed the next day and two days later, Granite police seized Lind's phone and SD card. Lind was placed on leave Jan. 22, the day his phone was taken, said Granite School District spokesman Ben Horsley.

Lind submitted a letter of resignation effective March 25, though Horsley said he never went back to the classroom after being placed on leave.

Lind had been with Cyprus since 1995. On the school's website he is listed as a "stage crew adviser." Horsley said Lind worked in several of the arts programs at the school, including photography.

Horsley noted that the filters set up on the school Wi-Fi prevent pornography from being assessed. To view pornography on school property, a person would likely have to previously download it from another source, he said.

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