School Officials Probe Porn Sites Visited on Internet

Just days after Pasadena school officials announced that employees had contacted pornographic Internet sites through the district’s server, officials say they are unable to determine the types of pornography viewed.

Records of the sites visited have been erased or discarded, said Betsy Richman, district spokeswoman.

“This is a self-erasing system that erases records every Friday,” Richman said.

Business Manager William Deeb did keep paper records of the adult-oriented sites he discovered three weeks ago, causing him to shut down the dial-in Internet and e-mail access, but he discarded them, Richman said.

Richman said she knew of only six sites that were visited, mostly ones that required fees for access. But they did provide pictures of female nudity and lesbian acts, including one that advertised images of teenagers engaged in sex acts. Richman said she had not examined the sites and could not comment on the possible viewing of child pornography.

“We’re not looking for retribution here. We’re looking to implement a policy that holds people accountable,” Richman said, adding that only 100 dial-in accounts were given out.