Sexual messages investigation, Wisconsin teacher sentenced
Kenosha County Courthouse
KENOSHA, Wis. - A former substitute teacher, who Kenosha County prosecutors said sent sexual messages to a student, has been sentenced to prison and ordered to register as a sex offender.
Prison sentence
In court:
Court records show Alexander Poyner, 34, pleaded guilty to felony contributing to the delinquency of a child in June. Three other felonies were dismissed as part of a plea negotiation. He initially faced 17 counts, according to a criminal complaint.
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A Kenosha County judge later sentenced Poyner to two years in prison and three years of extended supervision. Poyner was also ordered to register as a sex offender for 15 years.
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction records show all licenses in Poyner's name were revoked in June, a few days after court records show he was convicted.
Alexander Poyner
"Concerning messages"
The backstory:
The criminal complaint said a school resource officer investigated a report that a teen received "concerning messages" on Instagram from his former substitute teacher at Bradford High School in October 2024.
A detective reviewed the messages from Poyner to the teen student. Court filings said the messages were "sexual in nature and explicit in content." When a detective called Poyner, he "admitted that it was ‘probably unprofessional’" for him to be communicating with the teen.
Poyner later said he was "ashamed," according to the complaint, and he "did not intend for the messages to be construed in a sexual manner."
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Dig deeper:
Prosecutors said Poyner was a Kenosha Unified School District substitute teacher from October 2020 until April 2024, when he resigned due to an "inter-work note that had been shared with another staff member."
Poyner was also a substitute teacher at the West Allis-West Milwaukee School District from September 2021 through October 2024. He was placed on administrative leave amid an internal investigation of alleged misconduct and later resigned.
In September 2024, Poyner was a substitute teacher at Nicolet High School in Glendale.
The Source: Information in this story is from the Kenosha County District Attorney's Office, Wisconsin Circuit Court and Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.