A former Abilene middle school band director now faces federal and state felony charges for possessing child sexual abuse material involving young boys.
Lance Carl Mosley, 35, was arrested July 9 on a federal charge of possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor.
According to the federal indictment, Mosley’s iPhone and iPads contained depictions of boys aged 6-8 and 10-12 years old engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
The charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison.
Mosley was first arrested in January on a state charge of possessing child pornography, a third-degree felony punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison. An indictment followed in May.
At the time of his first arrest, Mosley worked in the Abilene Independent School District as the director of bands at Mann STEAM Academy. More than 200 students in grades 6-8 participate in the school’s band program.
Mosley was out of jail on a $250,000 bond when he was re-arrested on July 9. He is currently being held in the Taylor County Jail without bond and is scheduled to be arraigned in federal court on July 21.
Tips from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children prompted the Texas Department of Public Safety to investigate Mosley. They found the teacher had accessed child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online in July 2025.
Mosley had worked for Abilene ISD since 2020 and previously taught in San Angelo ISD.
He has held a Texas teaching certificate for music since 2013, which was renewed in February 2025. Mosley’s certification was placed on “indefinite suspension” until the case against him is resolved.
Mosley was also added to the state’s Do Not Hire Registry as “not eligible for hire” in any role in a Texas government school facility.
In just the past few years, hundreds of Texas school employees have been accused of sex crimes involving students and other children—including in Abilene ISD.
In 2024, Cooper High School music teacher Lawrence Grigg was arrested for having sexual relations with a student.
In 2025, former Abilene ISD teacher and counselor Robert Custer was arrested on a federal charge of accessing CSAM.
Also in 2025, Mark Eichorn was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to producing CSAM while a pre-school teacher at St. John’s Episcopal School in Abilene. Eichorn paid two boys, ages 12 and 13, to record themselves performing sexual acts on each other.
The TEA’s Educator Misconduct Reporting Dashboard shows the agency is currently investigating more than 2,500 sexual misconduct complaints and opening an average of 254 new cases each month.
