Yesterday was a hot day for a high school class in Norwalk.  The students were suppose to learn how a bill becomes a law from a presentation by an Ohio legislator, but instead the students saw a picture of a topless woman.

Rep. Matthew H. Barrett thought he was opening a PowerPoint that was saved on his USB drive.  Instead he opened a picture of a nude woman.  Investigators found a folder full of similar pictures on his “flash” drive.

Barrett got more attention for his “government” lecture than he anticipated when he found himself face-to-face with local police, the State Highway Patrol and television cameras.  He said the USB drive was a gift from the State Library of Ohio.  A spokeswoman from the library said the drive was blank when Barrett received it.

At first Barrett said he didn’t know how the picture got onto the drive.  Last night he released a statement saying he wanted to “put the matter behind him” and it was “an internal family matter.”

The last major story I remember dealing with a teacher accidentally showing inappropriate pictures to students ended with a guilty conviction and a teacher (Julie Amero) facing a 40 year sentence.  The circumstances were different.  Amero didn’t intentionally download inappropriate pictures at home and save them to a USB drive that was then transported to school and intentionally projected onto a screen in front of students.

Amero had the wrong defense.  She should have said it was an internal family matter.