James Neujahr (Outagamie Co. Jail)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Former Fox Valley Lutheran High School band director James Neujahr was charged with 20 counts of possession of child pornography, though police estimated there were about 2,000 files on his computer that appeared to contain such images.
Neujahr, 63, made an initial appearance Friday, where a $25,000 cash bond was set. He returns to court Thursday for a preliminary hearing.
Upon learning that formal charges had been filed, FVL announced it has “officially terminated Mr. Neujahr’s ministry service and all teaching duties, effective immediately.” He had been placed on administrative leave following his arrest.
If convicted, Neujahr faces a minimum of three years in prison for each count. The state would also seek a lifetime placement on the sex offender registry.
According to the criminal complaint, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children tipped the Appleton Police Department about child pornography images which had been sent online. The three files contained two photos showing naked children.
Police went to Neujahr’s home. He “indicated that he couldn’t lie or avoid the fact that he has had a lot of searching over the years,” the complaint states.
Neujahr said his computer would have multiple images.
Sgt. Danoski reports that he reviewed the contents of the external hard drive seized from James’ residence and Sgt. Danoski describes, below, 20 of the image files taken from the external hard drive. Sgt. Danoski reports that in total he would estimate there were approximately 2000 files found on the external hard drive that appeared to be Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM)/Child Pornography,” the complaint states.
There are no allegations involving any students from Fox Valley Lutheran High School, or any students from the other schools and organizations Neujahr has served, FVL said.
Fox Valley Lutheran High School President Jeffrey Loberger stated in a news release, “This is a difficult and disheartening situation for many people. We are committed to caring for our students, staff, families, and community with compassion, transparency, and faith in Christ. We continue to pray for all who are affected and place our trust in the Lord’s perfect wisdom.”
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