Broward Teacher Faces Firing After Arrest on Child-Porn Charges

Introduction to the Case

A Broward physical education teacher arrested twice in three months — the most recent time on child porn charges — is expected to be fired on Tuesday. The arrest of Craig Rogers, 60, a P.E. teacher at Westchester Elementary in Coral Springs, follows a history of run-ins with Coral Springs police that have escalated over the past five years.

Background and Previous Arrests

Schools Superintendent Howard Hepburn is asking the School Board to start the termination process, according to an item on the July 22 board agenda. The request, which is expected to be approved, would first suspend Rogers for 60 days without pay, giving him time to request a due process hearing before a state judge, and then fire him. Rogers, 60, was arrested July 1 and charged with seven counts of possession of child pornography. He is accused of sharing this illegal material with other users through Kik, a social media messaging platform, according to an affidavit for his arrest.

Details of the Charges

He remained in jail Tuesday. His lawyer, Jamie Benjamin, could not be reached for comment. At the time of his felony arrest, Rogers had already been removed from Westchester and placed in a job with no student contact at BECON, the district’s television studio, due to a previous arrest, according to a district document. On April 18, he was arrested on misdemeanor charges of stalking or harassing a family who lived next door and filing false police reports. Rogers was required to wear an ankle bracelet as a result of the April arrest, according to police reports.

History of Incidents with Police

Oftentimes, the school district has allowed employees arrested on serious charges to remain in the district and perform a job with no student contact until either their case has been resolved or the district completes its own investigation. But district officials say the conditions of his arrest make him ineligible to be employed as a teacher. He has been in a Broward County jail since his July 1 arrest. A judge agreed to revoke Rogers’ bond from his misdemeanor arrest due to the new charges. A status hearing on his misdemeanor case is scheduled for Thursday.

Restrictions and Prohibitions

Even if he were released, a court order for his felony charge prohibits him from using the internet, having contact with minors or any K-12 school or possessing any devices that record videos or take photos. The board agenda item states it “requests Board adoption of the Superintendent’s recommendation to terminate Rogers … for his failure to perform duties prescribed by law, based on a court order prohibiting Rogers from having contact with students.”

Previous Run-Ins with the Law

The Coral Springs Police Department has been responding for years to calls involving Rogers, starting with noise complaints, according to police records. He owns a townhouse that shares walls, ceilings and floors with his next-door neighbors, one report stated. Rogers “has an ongoing issue with his neighbor/victim,” a police officer wrote in a January 2021 report. “When leaving his residence, (he) intentionally turns up the volume of his television and radio. Once inside the victim’s residence, you can hear both devices.”

Escalation of Incidents

Police had responded 44 times to the issue, and Rogers had been repeatedly warned to turn the devices off, a Coral Springs police report from Jan. 26, 2021, states. The officer who wrote the report served as the school resource officer for Westchester and wrote that he had spoken to Rogers about this noise issue previously. “It should be noted that this is a continuing issue with his neighbor. I have had several conversations over the past couple of years encouraging him to make attempts to get along with his neighbor,” the officer wrote. “In the past, Rogers has claimed that he turns up his music when he leaves for the day because it is ‘therapeutic for his cat.’"

Further Investigations and Charges

Rogers pleaded no contest to a noise violation and was ordered to pay a $78 fine in March 2021. His neighbor sold her townhouse the next month, and it was sold twice more over the next two years. A neighbor who bought the house in 2023 frequently asked Rogers unsuccessfully to turn down his music and TV and eventually got Coral Springs police involved, according to an April 2025 police report. Rogers was issued six noise violation citations, the report states. Once police started responding to Rogers’ address, he “began calling in fictitious noise violations on the victims,” and he later filed false reports alleging domestic disturbances at the house, the report states.

Child Pornography Investigation

While Rogers faced misdemeanor charges for those issues, he also was being investigated on suspicion of far more serious crimes. Between August 2024 and May 2025, the South Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received nine cybertips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children concerning the distribution, possession and manufacture of child pornography discovered on the Kik platform, according to a July police report. “The investigation revealed that the common IP address belonged to the defendant” at his home on Cypress Pointe Way in Coral Springs, as well as a motel in Coral Springs, the report states.

Evidence and Plea

“Records obtained from the defendant’s ankle monitor correspond with the IP addresses reported by Kik,” the report states. “A search warrant was executed on the reported Kik accounts and there were at least 7 files depicting child pornography that were transmitted to other Kik users by the defendant. The videos generally depicted children as young as 6 years of age engaged in masturbation and sexual acts with adults.” In chat messages police obtained from Kik, Rogers calls himself a “pervert teacher’ and “my favorite students are age 12 at my school,” the affidavit states. Rogers has pleaded not guilty on his misdemeanor charges, but there’s no indication in court papers of a plea filed in his felony case.

Conclusion

Rogers has been employed with the district since 2003. He makes about $60,000 a year. The case against Rogers highlights the importance of thorough background checks and monitoring of school employees to ensure the safety and well-being of students. The severity of the charges against him has led to a swift response from the school district, with his termination expected to be finalized soon.

FAQs

Q: What are the charges against Craig Rogers?

A: Craig Rogers is charged with seven counts of possession of child pornography and faces misdemeanor charges for stalking or harassing a family and filing false police reports.

Q: Why is Rogers expected to be fired?

A: Rogers is expected to be fired due to the severity of the charges against him, including child pornography charges, and his inability to perform his duties as a teacher due to a court order prohibiting him from having contact with students.

Q: How long has Rogers been employed with the school district?

A: Rogers has been employed with the district since 2003 and makes about $60,000 a year.

Q: What is the status of Rogers’ plea?

A: Rogers has pleaded not guilty on his misdemeanor charges, but there’s no indication in court papers of a plea filed in his felony case.

Q: What is the next step in the case against Rogers?

A: The next step in the case against Rogers is a status hearing on his misdemeanor case, scheduled for Thursday, and the potential termination of his employment with the school district.