HANOVER COUNTY, Va. -- A Virginia court has rejected the appeal of a former school music teacher who is serving a 7-year prison sentence for child solicitation.
The court ruled Jan. 12 that a trial judge did not err in denying a motion by Ryan Thomas Pick of Woodbridge to suppress the contents of a sexually explicit online communication with an undercover investigator.
The court also rejected Pick’s claim that he was subjected to custodial interrogation without being advised of his Miranda rights and said there was sufficient evidence to support his conviction.
An investigation into Pick began in July of 2018 when an undercover officer with the Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, posing as a 12-year-old girl, connected with Pick on the social networking site Omegle.
Pick chatted with the officer, made comments that were sexual in nature, and sent a video of himself to the officer engaging in sexually explicit conduct, according to the Virginia Attorney General's Office.
“During the conversation, Pick sent He then made several statements about sex acts he wanted to engage in with the purported 12-year-old,” said the office.
Pick, who was a music teacher at Cameron Elementary School in Fairfax and the music director at St. Paul United Methodist Church in Woodbridge, was arrested Aug. 21, 2018.
“Individuals who sexually solicit children are robbing them of their childhood and their innocence, and what is even more troubling is that this man worked with children on a daily basis,” Attorney General Mark Herring said. “Because of the work my team and local law enforcement agencies put into this, another dangerous predator is out of our community. My office will continue to seek justice against those who would exploit and harm children like this.”
After convicting Pick, the jury subsequently recommended that he serve a seven-year prison term. Upon his release, Pick will be required to register as a sex offender in any jurisdiction in which he lives or works.
