Bail denied for Downers South assistant coach accused of possessing child porn
A federal judge denied bail Tuesday for a former Downers Grove South High School assistant track coach charged with possession of child pornography.
Glenn C. Messmer, 46, of the 900 block of Windmere in Darien, will remain in federal custody pending trial.
Northern Illinois District Magistrate Judge Jeffrey I. Cummings said no conditions of release he could impose would be adequate to ensure the safety of persons and the community.
He acknowledged that Messmer has no criminal history - typically cited as a positive reason to release someone pretrial. But Cummings said it could also be attributed "to how you were able to evade detection," such as by using different names on email addresses for the alleged crimes.
Messmer is accused of communicating with a 14-year-old Georgia girl, starting in the summer of 2022 via the Snapchat and Telegram apps. He asked her for explicit photos and videos of herself. He requested she do certain things and paid her.
He was arrested on April 25.
Cummings also noted Messmer owns an exercise business, where he trains teenagers and adults.
Messmer lives with his parents, who offered to post their house as bond. But Cummings said its closeness to a park and a school disturbed him. He also said evidence alleges that Cummings used a computer belonging to his parents for the crimes.
"You're a grown man," Cummings said. "They cannot control you. They have not controlled you, and it is unfair to expect them to."
Messmer started as an assistant girls track coach at Downers Grove South on April 13, 2021, according to a statement from Community High School District 99. He also volunteered as a track coach in the spring of 2019 at Downers Grove South and during the 2019-20 school year at Downers Grove South and Downers Grove North high schools. He was a volunteer at the Downers Grove South track summer camp in 2020, according to the statement.
According to the federal complaint, when Homeland Security Investigators arrested him, Messmer admitted to sending requests to 30 to 60 underage girls via Snapchat. He allegedly told them that almost all the girls agreed to send images and videos, and he typically paid $10 to $50 for them.
The complaint also alleges that images of children as young as 4 years old were found.