David Elliott Pritt
Introduction
David Elliott Pritt is a former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates who represented a Fayette County district and worked as a teacher in Fayette County Schools. In November 2026, the 36-year-old Oak Hill resident pleaded guilty in federal court to attempted production of child pornography, admitting that he had engaged in “inappropriate” conversations and exchanged nude images with a teenage victim over Snapchat. The plea, entered five months after his arrest, had already cost him his legislative seat and his teaching job.
Background Information
Pritt served in the West Virginia House of Delegates as a legislator for Fayette County while also teaching in the county’s public school system. According to an affidavit previously filed in his federal case, the relationship at the center of the charges began in the 2024-25 school year, when the girl was in eighth grade, and Pritt began communicating with her and at least one other female student outside of school. His July 2026 arrest triggered an abrupt fall: he resigned from the House of Delegates and was fired by Fayette County Schools.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Pleaded guilty to attempted production of child pornography; sentencing pending. Pritt admitted in federal court to attempting to persuade an approximately 14-year-old girl to send him sexually explicit images, with the other two counts in his indictment dropped under his plea agreement.
Pritt was arrested on July 22, 2026 following an investigation and initially faced charges of child sexual exploitation, coercion of a minor and witness tampering. A federal indictment followed on August 19, 2026. After signaling in a letter the previous week that he intended to plead guilty under a plea agreement, he appeared before U.S. District Judge Irene C. Berger in Charleston on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, and entered the plea. As part of the agreement, Pritt pleaded guilty to one count of attempted production of child pornography while the other two counts in his indictment were dropped.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Pritt communicated with the approximately 14-year-old girl using the Snapchat app from approximately June 2025 through at least January 2026, and admitted in court that he tried to persuade the minor female to take and send him sexually explicit images. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Herrald said that had the case gone to trial, testimony from the victim would have shown Pritt sent her sexually explicit messages and asked her to take and send him nude photos, told her he loved her and believed they were in a romantic relationship, and engaged in grooming behavior when she was in middle school. Investigators also alleged that Pritt sent messages to the victim this past summer warning her not to tell anyone what occurred between them or “the state police show up and take your phone and mine and open up hell in our lives. And because of me it would very much not be a low key. It would be in the news. It would be awful. For both of us. And I would lose my entire life.”
A Samsung cell phone and a Microsoft Surface laptop were seized from Pritt as part of the investigation; he will be required to forfeit the devices and register as a sex offender in addition to his sentence.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The plea drew a forceful response from federal prosecutors. “Parents send their children to school trusting that the adults there will keep them safe. Elliott Pritt violated that trust,” said U.S. Attorney Moore Capito, whose office said the guilty plea — achieved in consultation with the victim and her family — ensures Pritt will serve time in federal prison and expressed hope that it brings relief to the community and gives the victim and her family an opportunity to heal in privacy. The professional consequences had already landed: Pritt resigned his House seat in July 2026, withdrew his name from the General Election ballot in early August, and was fired by Fayette County Schools following his arrest.
Current Status
Pritt is scheduled to be sentenced on March 4, 2027, in federal court in Charleston. The attempted production charge carries a mandatory minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000; MetroNews also reported potential restitution paid to the victim as part of the possible penalty. He must register as a sex offender and forfeit the devices seized during the investigation.
Impact on Their Career/Life
Pritt’s dual careers in politics and education ended within weeks of his July 2026 arrest: his Fayette County House seat was vacated by resignation, he was removed from the November General Election ballot in early August, and Fayette County Schools fired him from his teaching job. The guilty plea now stands as a federal conviction carrying a mandatory-minimum prison term of 15 years, supervised release of up to a lifetime, sex-offender registration, device forfeiture and potential restitution.