CENTRAL TEXAS -- A Union Grove Middle School teacher and coach was arrested by Harker Heights Police Thursday after an investigation by the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office found he had solicited a minor online.
Hamilton County Sheriff Justin Caraway told Channel 6 he traveled Wednesday with another deputy to Harker Heights with a search and seizure warrant for David Balsinger's belongings. When Caraway and the deputy made contact with Balsinger, they proceeded to search his phone and laptop. They also interviewed Balsinger, who Caraway said actually confessed to online solicitation of a minor, which is a third degree felony.
Harker Heights Police arrested Balsinger at his home on Thursday.
The Killeen Independent School District confirmed Thursday it had placed Balsinger on administrative leave and barred him from access the campuses pending the outcome of any criminal proceedings. The district said, however, the case does not involve a KISD student.
“The Killeen Independent School District requires teachers and all employees to maintain the highest standards of conduct and will never tolerate illegal or inappropriate behavior by an employee toward any child. We are saddened and outraged by this alleged conduct by one of our teachers. We will work closely with law enforcement officials in this matter, and if the allegations prove true, we will support the strongest possible legal action against this teacher,” Superintendent John Craft wrote in an emailed statement from a district communications official.
Balsinger taught and coached at Union Grove Middle School since 2007, according to KISD Chief Communications Officer Terry Abbott. Balsinger was first hired as a substitute teacher in 1990 before later becoming a full-time teacher at Clear Creek Elementary in 1997, then switching to Mountain View Elementary in 2003 and eventually joining Union Grove in 2007, according to the district.
According to an arrest affidavit obtained by Channel 6, Balsinger went by the user name "bigdballzz" and the screen name "Big D." The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office convinced Balsinger he was chatting on the KIK messenger app with a 15-year-old girl from Evant, who was actually just a phony profile created by law enforcement, according to the arrest affidavit.
The affidavit claimed Balsinger knew what he was doing was wrong. When law enforcement used the fake profile to ask Balsinger if he would like to meet, the affidavit said he responded with a series of messages including "Well, for one it's illegal" and "You are 15 years old." In one seemingly foreshadowing message, Balsinger wrote "you could be an undercover police officer...posing as a 15 year old," according to his arrest affidavit.
But, Balsinger later said he was thinking of the nonexistent girl and messaged "Send me a pic of your p---y" -- adding "If you actually sent me nude pictures I might return the favor." Those messages ultimately led to his arrest, according to the affidavit.
You can read the arrest affidavit below. Some identifying information and vulgar language has been removed.
Arrest Affidavit for David Balsinger by Channel 6 News on Scribd