Retired Baltimore Polytechnic teacher arrested in child solicitation probe

Maryland authorities arrested retired Baltimore Polytechnic Institute teacher Dennis Jutras after an undercover Harford County investigation into online child solicitation led detectives to a park meet-up in Harford County, where they took him into custody without incident.

The Harford County Sheriff’s Office said the investigation began May 7, 2026, when a detective posing as a 15-year-old boy was contacted on a social media platform. Investigators say Jutras identified himself as an educator with Baltimore City Public Schools during the exchange, then sent sexually charged messages and inappropriate sexual photos to the undercover detective. Authorities say he later arranged to meet the teen at a park in Harford County.

Court records list Jutras, 61, and show he was arrested May 13. He is being held without bail at the Harford County Detention Center as the investigation continues. The sheriff’s office is asking anyone with information, or anyone who may have been victimized by Jutras, to contact Detective Sergent at 410-836-5428.

Baltimore City Public Schools said Jutras has been placed on administrative leave and said it is not aware of any impact on City Schools students. Charging documents, as described in local reporting, identified the platform involved as Sniffies and described Jutras as coordinator for K-12 Gifted & Advanced Learning before his arrest.

Public education archives show Jutras spent years at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, where he taught history, served on the school improvement team, advised student government, and created an AP U.S. History program. In 2005, when he was 40, he was named Baltimore’s Teacher of the Year. Those records place him among the most visible educators connected to Poly, a school whose alumni network stretches across Baltimore’s neighborhoods and civic life.

The case now spans two counties and two public institutions, with the alleged conduct surfacing through Harford County law enforcement while tied to a Baltimore City school employee. For current and former Polytechnic families, it raises the hard question of how school systems monitor staff whose classroom records and public credentials can outlast their time in front of students. The sheriff’s office says the case remains active.