I. Home II. Summary of Case III. Brady Smith      a. Evidence and Allegations      b. Profile      c. Audiotape Transcript IV. John Piland's Handling of Case      a. The Plea Bargain      b. The Conflict of Interest      c. The Probation Violations      d. The Untried Cases V. The Civil Cases VI. Conclusions      a. Effects on our Community      b. What You Can Do Who I Am Credits Discussion Forum

Brady Smith Brady Smith was the dean of students at Franklin Middle School in Champaign from 1994 to 2001.   There are 9 African American males in the public records that have come forward about solicitation or molestation from Smith, stretching from 1977 to 2001.  According to attorney Ellyn Bullock, who is representing some of the victims in civil litigation, there are more who do not want to come forward publicly, for the usual and obvious reasons.  Usually in child molestation cases, the actual number of cases is greater than the number of reported ones, especially when there has been a long history of it.  Evidence and Allegations Below are the publicly available allegations and evidence concerning Brady Smith.  Each incident described is a separate case, with names removed to protect identities. Smith was caught on audiotape soliciting a 14 year old boy for sex.  A man came forward, unsolicited, in 2002 describing molestation that happened in 1977 (when he was 13 years old), and also mentioned another boy he suspected was molested.  In a police report, the man described how Smith operated, which included impressing young teenage kids with gifts and his ties to basketball stars, and getting them to spend the night at his house. Charges were filed for sexual molestation of a 15 year old boy in 1999/2000, groomed since 6th grade.  In a police report, he describes Smith buying him things, expecting him to repay him with sexual favors, eventually leading to multiple acts of sexual molestation.  In another report, Brady had admitted to giving him 3-4 thousand dollars worth of gifts.  Charges were filed for grooming two brothers in middle school from 1997-2001.  The charges describe Smith promising to buy gifts and give lenient punishments at school when the boys got into trouble in exchange for sexual favors, as well as Smith deceiving their mom as to where they were.  This was after a no-contact order between Smith and the boys because of her suspicions.  One of the boys was sexually molested by Smith, as described in this police report. Charges of solicitation and sexual grooming by a 14 year old boy in 2001.  A boy came forward to the school district in 1996 claiming he had been sexually molested by Smith, and that Smith told him it was "therapy".  He did not attend school after that, and is now in prison for drug offenses. An unsolicited letter was written to a local newspaper reporter by a man who said he was a victim of Smith and he had been "getting away with this" for 10 years. Although Smith publicly maintains his innocence, he privately admitted to his probation officer that he is guilty of "some" of the charges against him. NEW: A youth just recently (Sep 2004) filed charges against Smith in civil court claiming sexual molestation by Smith in the late 1990s.  Note that some of these points are solid evidence, and some are accusations.  However, I believe the evidence clearly points to multiple victims over long periods of time.  When I speak of Smith's "victims" on this site, I'm not making claims about specific allegations, but rather referring to my overall conclusion that multiple kids have been affected by his sexual offenses, and that even he himself has admitted to some of the allegations.  And I include the parents of the affected children as victims, too.  No parent can see a child go through something like this and not feel victimized as well. Difficulty of Coming Forward Keep in mind that it is very hard for victims of sexual abuse to publicly come forward.   Also note that male victims of sexual abuse are not necessarily homosexual, and are afraid of being perceived as such.  Embarrassment, guilt and shame are huge issues for them, and perpetrators are usually in positions of power over their victims, which makes coming forward even harder.  The boys that have come forward with charges of abuse have shown an enormous amount of courage in their attempt to prevent Smith from abusing other kids.  These are largely street-wise black kids who have had no reason to trust the law enforcement system.  Some have suggested that these boys came forward out of spite or greed or some other far-fetched motivation.  Anyone who thinks a succession of black teenage boys would make up a story about homosexual contact with a middle-aged white man has probably not spent a lot of time with teenage boys or black culture. Sexual Offender Profile The stereotype of  pedophiles is that they are suspicious-looking strangers in trenchcoats who hang out around school playgrounds.  Perpetrators actually  are almost always adults who personally know the children they abuse and have great rapport with them (see a profile here ).  They pick troubled kids who have few advocates looking out of them.  They give lots of gifts to kids, and they are very good at gaining the trust of both children and their parents.  They have poor boundaries with kids, and they often joke or tease in very sexual ways.  Grooming takes place over a long period of time, as the child comes to trust the perpetrator more and more, and as they develop a relationship.  Note that just because someone is good with kids doesn't mean he is a pedophile.  People who learn about the profile of a perpetrator for the first time become very concerned that anyone who is good with kids fits the profile.  That isn't the case.  But, nonetheless, long-term pedophiles have to be very good with kids, or they wouldn't be successful at what they do. A closer look at Brady Smith reveals that he fits this classic profile.  He has been in professions that allow him access to a steady stream of troubled kids, first as a probation officer, and later as dean of students at a middle school.  Black boys are unfortunately not seen as very credible in our society, especially compared to respectable probation officers and deans of students.  The boys who have come forward are ones who got into trouble at school, and needed favors.  Many reports describe Brady giving gifts to kids, such as sports  shoes, which they highly value.  He demonstrated poor boundaries with his students, whom he would give rides home, take out to eat, and drive out of town to buy things for.  Students were frequently coming over to his house, and even staying overnight.   Showing a serious interest in your students is an admirable quality, but at some point a line is crossed that should cause concern.  Those who work in organizations that take child sexual abuse seriously are supposed to be trained to recognize these red flags, and have policies against them. Note that these red flags don't prove Smith is a pedophile -I merely present them here as background. The audiotape and the boys' descriptions of the solicitation and molestation are the actual evidence. Other Tidbits Another interesting clue into Brady Smith's thinking is that in his probation report (6/7/02), he said that African American boys are more mature than their actual age.  At the time he was defending having illegal contact with boys during his probation.  If he rationalizes contact with minors in violation of his probation due to the "maturity" of the boys, what else does he rationalize? Another less flattering tidbit about Brady is that he told his probation officer that he and his attorney were trying to dig up dirt on the probation officer, and also letting the officer know that he personally knew the officer's boss's boss, Don Meyer, presumably trying to intimidate the officer. Next: The Plea Bargain