A retired Columbiana County teacher is scheduled to go on trial this fall on 75 felony charges handed down in a secret indictment alleging that he possessed lewd images of children.

During a hearing on Thursday, Common Pleas Court Judge Megan Bickerton scheduled an October 21 trial for 68-year-old James Watt of Columbiana who was arrested last month.  The judge also scheduled a status hearing for Watt on October 10.

Police say they seized 18 devices from Watt based on information from a "cyber tip."

The indictment alleges that Watt possessed obscene material involving children on October 22. One count was filed for each image allegedly in Watt's possession.

Watt, a former track and field coach and STEM teacher at David Anderson Jr. Sr. High School for more than three decades, is charged with pandering and possessing obscenity involving minors.

According to state records, Watt had a license to teach high school science in Ohio since 1980.