Manheim Township High School teacher and girls' basketball coach, David Sean Burkhart, who is charged in a wild child porn case involving New Jersey police. 

By Jillian Pikora From Daily Voice

A high school teacher and coach is accused of sending nude photos to who he believed was a 14-year-old girl in New Jersey and hoarding dozens of child pornography images and videos, according to a release issued on Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 12:30 p.m.

Manheim Township High School teacher, David Sean Burkhart, 45, of the 700 block of Scott Lane in Warwick Township, was charged with three counts of sexual abuse of children, one count of unlawful contact with a minor, and two counts of criminal use of a communication facility, Manheim Township Police Det. Nicholas Fritz wrote in the affidavit.

Burkhart is accused of exchanging explicit messages with what he thought was a teenage girl in Camden County, New Jersey, but the “girl” was actually two undercover police officers, according to the release. The officers first encountered him online in May. Burkhart identified himself as a high school teacher and former girls’ basketball coach before turning the conversation sexual, sending nude photos of himself, and commenting about “checking out” young girls in his classroom, police said.

Police executed a search warrant at the high school in early September and seized Burkhart’s phone. Investigators found dozens of images and videos of nude juveniles engaged in indecent contact with themselves or others. One image showed five nude juveniles and was created using generative artificial intelligence, according to authorities.

His Background As A Longtime Teacher And Coach

Burkhart spent more than 19 years with the Manheim Township School District, according to his LinkedIn. He taught a variety of business and computer courses beginning in January 2007 and served as the district’s Business Education Department Content Specialist starting in February 2023. His listed coursework includes Personal Financial Literacy, Introduction to Business, Entrepreneurship, Marketing, and content applications for both elementary and high school students. He also supervised the Writing Center computer lab and co-advised the Bluetique.

Burkhart coached girls’ basketball for nearly 16 years—first as the junior varsity coach beginning in 2006 and later as the head varsity coach from 2011 through April 2023.

His education section lists multiple master’s programs at Slippery Rock University, Commonwealth University–Bloomsburg, and Wilkes University, along with earlier degrees from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania and Lebanon Valley College, where he played on the men’s soccer team. His LinkedIn profile also states he is currently “looking” for work.

His X profile describes him as "Husband, teacher, coach...sports fanatic."

Court Docket Details

Burkhart’s case was filed on Wednesday, Dec. 3, according to his court docket. His preliminary arraignment was held at 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday before Judge Courtney Monson, who set his bail at $25,000 unsecured. He is currently free on that amount and is barred from using social media or contacting children or victims as a condition of his bail, authorities said. 

His case remains active as he awaits his preliminary hearing scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 10, at 10 a.m. before Judge Courtney Monson. 

Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Ponessa will prosecute the case.