An East Texas elementary school teacher was charged with possessing child sexual abuse material.
Jerry Michael Cobb, 47, was arrested on charges of possession or promotion of child pornography, a third-degree felony, and assault causing bodily injury, a Class A misdemeanor.
He was booked into the Angelina County Jail on March 3 and released the next day on bonds totaling $15,000.
Cobb is a teacher at Onalaska Elementary School in the Onalaska Independent School District, a two-school district located north of Houston with about 1,200 students and 90 teachers.
The Onalaska Police Department was notified on February 11, 2026, of an incident in which Cobb had “unwanted contact against a juvenile.”
“We initiated an investigation and interviewed several adults and juveniles,” a March 4 statement read. “We established probable cause and issued the following warrants, two counts of Misdemeanor A Assault and one count of Felony 3 Possession of Child Pornography.”
The Angelina County Sheriff’s Office then located and arrested Cobb on the OPD warrants.
According to police, the images found during the investigation “are not of any juveniles from our community.”
Onalaska Police Chief Byron Dunaway added, “We were contacted last year by a parent in regards to Cobb and spoke with that parent. The parent decided to not involve us at that time.”
The beginning of this school year that same parent contacted me again and we spoke. Based on the investigation of that incident, there was enough evidence to issue a Class C Assault Citation to Cobb which we did. The parent understood our investigation and what criminal charge was applicable. When we were made aware in February, we had more people willing to speak with us.
The investigation is still active and will be forwarded to the Polk County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.
Onalaska ISD stated that Cobb was placed on leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
“The safety of our students is our number one priority and will always guide our decisions,” the district stated.
Online records show Cobb has worked in five East Texas school districts over the past 10 years, having previously taught in Zavalla, Livingston, Huntington, and Nacogdoches ISDs.
Cobb has held a Texas teaching certificate for special education since 2003. He is also currently certified to teach multi-subject classes, health, and physical education; and to serve as a principal. His certifications are not currently under review.
Over the past few years, a growing number of Texas school employees have been accused of sex crimes involving students and other children—including possessing, producing, and distributing CSAM.
Thousands have been reported to the Texas Education Agency for sexual misconduct.
