A former Maryland educator accused of using artificial intelligence to falsely portray a school principal as racist has been sentenced to four months behind bars under a plea deal for a misdemeanor charge of disrupting school operations.
Dazhon Darien, 32, was convicted on Monday, a year after he was arrested for using artificial intelligence to fabricate an audio recording of the school’s principal making racist and antisemitic remarks.
The former Pikesville High School athletic director entered an Alford plea before Baltimore County Circuit Court Judge Jan Alexander — which means he acknowledged that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him but didn’t admit guilt.
The fake recording went viral and triggered a “wave of hate-filled messages on social media and numerous calls to the school [and] caused significant disruptions for the PHS staff and students,” according to charging documents.
It also led to the removal of Principal Eric Eiswert from the school.
Eiswert, who has since become the principal of Sparrows Point Middle School, said the experience tarnished his 27-year reputation as a respected educator — even after people learned the recording was a hoax.
“I am slowly rebuilding my professional career, and I’m beginning to heal,” Eiswert said Monday, according to the Baltimore Banner. “But this experience will never leave me.”
Darien initial charges also included theft, stalking and retaliation against a witness.
After pleading guilty on Monday to one count of disturbing school operations, he was sentenced to four months in the Baltimore County Detention Center.
However, according to the Baltimore Sun, the sentence handed down by Judge Alexander is largely symbolic, as Darien remains in custody after his January arrest on federal charges of child pornography and sexual exploitation.
With News Wire Services
